


A Half-Breed's worth

by Dragonsmith



Series: Children of the War [2]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Canon Compliant, Gen, Harry Potter Next Generation, Hogwarts Second Year, Hufflepuff, Next Generation, Next-Gen, Post-War, Professor Harry Potter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-26
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-08-29 15:47:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 26
Words: 92,363
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16746898
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dragonsmith/pseuds/Dragonsmith
Summary: Book 2 of the Children of the War series.Kuro returns for his second year at Hogwarts alongside his friends Edward Lupin, Charlie, and Mary. His hopes of a peaceful year are shattered as a famous Auror with a lightning scar takes a job at Hogwarts.  To make matters worse children begin disappearing from school grounds, and Kuro fears that he may be next.*******************************************************************************************This story follows several new students, including Teddy Lupin and Victoire Weasley, through their first year at Hogwarts. It is meant to satisfy anyone looking for another Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in a canon compliant sequel to the original series, particularly those of a Hufflepuff persuasion.





	1. Chapter 1 - St. Brutus's Centre for Boys

Walter Thomas looked at his map in utter confusion. He had been delivering the post to this section of Guilford for nearly eighteen years and had never noticed this street. He must have passed by it dozens, if not hundreds of times and never paid it any attention. He had never even read the street sign. He hadn't noticed the street, had never been down it, and had certainly never made a delivery on it.

He thought he knew the area better than anyone. The idea that there was a street he had to look up on his map was almost insulting. When he first saw the address on the letter he was holding he thought it a mistake, or a prank. Perhaps someone at the office had penned in the road on his map and sent him on a wild goose chase. Now, sitting at the end of the street he could not deny that it was real.

Mr. Thomas was bothered at not knowing of the street's existence, but he was not at all upset that he hadn't been there before. This was not the most welcoming neighborhood in Guilford. It may have once been a bustling industrial area, but now the street was lined with abandoned and decrepit old factories. They were mostly gutted and crumbling and looked as though they were being held together by graffiti.

He checked the letter again.

Kuro

St. Brutus' Center for Boys

23 Potter Cl

GU3 7ZQ

Guilford, Surrey

It looked as though the address had been penned by a child. Perhaps they had gotten it wrong. He couldn't imagine a boy's home on such a street. He decided that it must be an error, but he would do his duty and make his best effort at a delivery. He turned his little post van down the broken and pothole filled street and worked to distinguish some numbers on the rotting old buildings.

Now that he was on it, the street seemed more familiar. He didn't believe that he would have forgotten a dreary and broken place like this, but driving down it gave him a deep sense of deja vu. It was like something half recalled from dream, or nightmare. He didn't recognize the buildings, but he knew where to find the numbers on them. He didn't know the road, but his hands seemed to know when to swerve to avoid potholes.

There was a number twenty-three. Or at least he assumed it must be twenty-three because there was a number twenty-one to the left and twenty-five to the right of the entrance. Looking at the gate, he very much wished that it had been any of the other buildings on the street.

Where the rest of the buildings merely looked neglected, this one was deeply foreboding. Its gate was iron, old and rusting, with fierce points to dissuade and punish trespassers. The grounds were untended and filled with thistles and thorny vines. The long drive up from the gate led to what appeared to be a dull, rectangular fortress.

Mr. Thomas searched for a box in which to drop the letter before he made a hasty retreat, but there was none. Neither was there a bell or intercom. Just an impenetrable iron gate. As duty-bound as he felt to deliver the letter, he was not about to attempt to scale a spear-tipped fence to do it.

He threw his van into reverse and was about to pull away when the gate opened.

Mr. Thomas stared at the ferocious black gate as it swung smoothly aside to allow him entrance. It occurred to him only after he had changed gears and pulled through that the gate did not look mechanical. He could see no motors or pulleys or any device at all to move those large iron doors.

The thought worried him, but he felt something growing inside him. He told himself it was curiosity, but it felt more like anticipation. He was growing eager to see what was at the other end of this drive. His heart pushed his foot down on the gas and drove him onward, while his mind begged to move his foot to the brake.

His little van wound its way up the cracked and uneven drive almost of its own accord. He was telling himself to stop, yet he grew more and more eager to press on.

He encountered the rusted shell of a car which blocked him from driving on. Against all manner of good sense, he hopped from his van and continued by foot. As he approached the concrete citadel, the sense of foreboding increased with every step. The high concrete walls were topped with coils of barbed wire. There were no windows and only a single door visible. The dark grey walls seemed to suck the warmth and light from the air.

Something screamed inside him to run, to forget the letter and flee. Everything around him seemed frightening and hostile. It was as though the ground itself was offended at his trespass. His feet, though pressed on. His hands shook, not with fear, but with eager anticipation. He had to deliver the letter, he just had to. If he did, there would be something good. He did not know what, but his heart thrummed like that of a schoolboy on a first date.

The tumult inside him came to a head as he reached the door. It was solid, heavy, and steel. There was no bell, box or knocker. Above it hung a sign of hammered iron, orange with rust which stained the concrete behind it. It read "St. Brutus's Secure Centre for Incurably Criminal Boys"

It was too much. He could not bring himself to knock on the door, to see whatever horrors lie behind it. There was no post box, no means of delivery, he was free to leave. He had done his duty. Any more would be madness.

He turned to go, deeply relieved to be retreating, but that part of him that had driven him onward cried quietly inside him.

Before he could make it two steps, he heard the door open.

"Walter," said a kind, warm, familiar voice. "Come inside. Have a tea before you go."

Mr. Thomas turned back. A woman was standing in the doorway. She was silhouetted by the vibrant sunlight that was pouring out around her, giving her an angelic glow. Her hair was dark and flecked with grey. Her face was lined with care and creased from years of smiling too much. Her hazel eyes seemed to radiate kindness and warmth.

She was a stranger, yet somehow wonderfully familiar. She was like something remembered from a dream. Enchanted, he followed her through the ominous portal.

It was like stepping into another world. Inside, the walls were vibrant white marble. The barbed wire was gone along with the oppressive dread and creeping chill. The summer sun shone bright and warm on well tended lawns which stretched between gardens and shady trees. There was a large manor house flanked by two smaller dormitories. In the center of it all was a larger-than-life bronze statue of a man in flowing robes, standing heroically and holding up what appeared to be a conductor's wand.

Mr. Thomas began to think that the sign outside had been somewhat misleading. There were definitely boys living here. There was a gaggle of them out enjoying the sun, but there were at least a dozen girls as well.

They did not seem particularly criminal either, at least not more criminal than any collection of youths. A couple of them did look rather shady. There was a small girl that glowered at him through greasy dark hair that she let fall into her face. A very small boy with overlarge ears perched on the manor roof like a gargoyle. And a young woman with jagged teeth that was built like a troll tromped across the grass. However, on closer inspection, the dark-haired girl was glowering as his entrance had interrupted her reading, the gargoyle-boy was fetching a lost ball from the roof, and the troll-girl was helping a toddler to fetch an apple from a tree.

One thing about the sign did ring true: this place was secure. However, when he turned back to look at the door, he did not see locks that would require a key. It seemed that the place was meant more to protect the inhabitants than to keep them in.

A small group of teenagers strolled up and greeted him as if they'd known him for years. "Morning Mr. Thomas," said one of them. "Got anything for me?"

"I, um" the postman stuttered. "I don't know. I just have the one today. For a Mr. Kuro."

Their faces fell and they wandered back to join some children tossing a ball around from atop their flying brooms. It struck Mr. Thomas that he should find this odder than he did. "What is this place?" he asked quietly to his escort.

"It is an orphanage, Walter," she answered patiently. "An orphanage for wizards."

"Oh, of course it is." It seemed an entirely sensible explanation. Looking around, he couldn't imagine it being anything else. "And why..."

The woman for whom he felt an inexplicable and overwhelming affection for cut him off. "Because you have been delivering our post for years, Walter. A couple times a month, more in the summer," she said as if reciting well recited lines. "And you like your tea lightly steeped, with cream and no sugar."

She smiled at she spoke and it made his heart skip a beat whenever their eyes met. "That can't be. I'd remember. I wouldn't forget a place like this, and certainly not someone like you." He choked on his words, amazed at himself for saying something so imprudent to a stranger.

"I'll never get tired of hearing that, Walter." She took and squeezed his hand before shouting up to the gargoyle-boy on the roof. "There's a letter for you, Kuro. Come down and don't..."

Her warning was too slow. The boy leapt like a frog into the open air and plummeted three stories to the garden below. The postman made to run and catch the boy, but the woman held him back. He saw the boy roll in the air and land more softly than a cat in a bed of flowers.

"...land in the garden," she concluded with an exasperated tone.

The child scampered up eagerly. He looked to be maybe ten or eleven, but was very short and rather scrawny. His large curious eyes and messy hair were nearly black and his skin was a mottled tan. From his general appearance and the name on the envelope, Mr. Thomas guessed the boy was at least part Japanese, though his unusually large ears and long nose made him look a little bit British. He had the look of someone who had seen too much, eaten too little, and struggled for what little he had. The postman was used to seeing that look on street kids and the homeless, but not on someone so young.

The boy snatched up the letter and thanked the postman politely. He then dashed off so quickly that Mr. Thomas had trouble keeping track of the movements. He gave the impression of a squirrel running for its burrow to hide stolen nuts

"Would you like that tea, now?" asked the woman as if she already knew the answer.

"Yes, please. I think I could use one."

The kettle boiled at the wave of the woman's hand and the tea served itself. It was wonderful, as he somehow knew it would be. As he sipped it, the woman filled him in on the events of the past couple of weeks. She told him how Hubert had finally found work and was off to France to develop cosmetics for Madame Primpernelle, how Meredith was being scouted by the Holyhead Harpies, and how young Lucy was learning to get about on her own without anyone pushing her wheelchair. Each little story warmed his heart, like hearing about the accomplishments of his own nieces and nephews. By the time his tea was drained he was beaming with affection for this strange place that he loved but did not know.

He looked sadly at his empty teacup. He had lingered too long in this magical place. He needed to get back to his deliveries. He longed to stay, to be in the company of this wonderful woman, but he was out of excuses.

She led him to the door back to the desolate, broken, and mundane street. He stopped just short of the exit. "I'm terribly sorry," he said, "I never asked your name."

There was still warmth in her smile but her eyes had turned sad. "Rosalind," she said softly, taking his hand, Rosalind Moody."

"It has been an absolute pleasure, Rosalind," said Mr. Thomas. "I look forward to the next letter that comes your way."

"You always do," replied Miss Moody. Her eyes were getting wet. She stood on tiptoes and leaned in to kiss the postman on the cheek. "Goodbye again Walter."

There was a very familiar sadness in her voice. She drew a slender piece of well-polished wood from her apron and placed the tip against his temple. With a quaver in her voice, she said "Obliviate."

Walter Thomas shook a stray thought from his mind and checked the clock on his dash. Had it really gotten so late? He still had several bags of mail to deliver. This section of town always seemed to eat up more time than it should. He was glad to be leaving it. There was nothing but broken down old factories and potholes around there.


	2. Chapter 2 - Mary's Letter

Kuro was overjoyed to finally receive a letter. He had written to his school friends the day he arrived at St. Brutus' and this was the first he'd heard back.

It should have been an easy thing to correspond with Edward and Charlie. They were both from wizarding families that could send and receive owls. Under normal circumstances they could have sent letters back and forth a few times a week.

The Centre didn't allow it, though. It was magically protected from outsiders. You couldn't get there if you hadn't been shown where it was. Kuro didn't understand it entirely, but even having the address wasn't good enough. You needed to be walked right up to the gates before you even knew it was there. That protection even extended to owls.

It was all for good reason. Most of the children at St. Brutus' were orphans. Some by chance and misfortune but most of them were the sons and daughters of people that had fought and died in the wizarding war twelve years ago. There had been people on both sides after the war that proved they would punish children for the crimes of their parents. 

To protect the children from those that would do them harm, the Centre had been hidden away from all eyes, wizards and muggles alike. The postman was one of the few that knew the location, though he wasn't allowed to remember that he knew it. The matron of the orphanage, Miss Moody, had to modify his memory every time he visited.

Kuro had all of this explained to him three weeks ago when he arrived. Given that he, himself, had been kept as a slave for most of his life and there were people still looking to recapture him, he had to accept the protection the Centre offered.

It was a very pleasant place to stay. The grounds were beautiful with bright flowers, soft grass, and fruiting trees. The food was simple but hearty. Miss Moody was as kind and welcoming as could be. However, it was lonely.

Kuro felt very foolish feeling lonely. He had spent most of his life alone. In his first eleven years he hadn't had a friend or companion. The only person he knew had been Phineas Hearn, who had kept Kuro as a slave. But after Hearn's arrest, Kuro had been found and sent to Hogwart's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and had made friends. Friends he now missed very much.

The absence of his friends was made all the more poignant by the other children around him at the orphanage. Most had spent many years there and laughed and played and fought and argued in a comfortable, impenetrably familial sort of way. Kuro felt like an interloper, like a guest in a stranger's house.

He had tried to fit in when he first arrived. Everyone had initially been quite keen to meet him, too. They were curious about his past and his adventures at school and wanted to know all about him. Kuro was uncomfortable with everyone paying attention to him, though. He was unused to being listened to, and a room full of children hungry for news of anything outside the walls of the orphanage was overwhelming. It was too much pressure and it made him feel shy and nervous. He stuttered his way through his introductions and ended up telling them things he probably shouldn't have.

In hindsight he could have told them about any of his adventures at Hogwarts: exploring the hidden passages, or hunting doxyflies, or the elf feast at Christmas. Or he could have told them about Knockturn Alley, about the hidden entrances to it across Britain, his friendship with the ghostly rector with a flaming skull for a head, and the battle that raged through it to rescue him from a kidnapping by his former master.

Instead, he mumbled about being a failed experiment to cross-breed elves and humans. This garnered some interest, but didn't endear him to the orphans as he didn't have any parents to have lost. He explained that he'd been a servant and thief for Phineas Hearn, the known murderer and dark wizard, but failed to get across that it wasn't a voluntary position and he'd often been beaten and starved. In a vain attempt to distract the increasingly suspicious group, he introduced them to his mangy one-eyed cat, Graeae, who bit one of the younger girls.

Kuro wished that Charlie had been there. She was a brilliant storyteller. Her tales weren't always entirely true, but she had a way with words and so much confidence that she made Kuro feel braver just having her around. Her gregariousness was probably the only reason Kuro had any friends. If she hadn't barged in on his compartment on the Hogwarts Express, he wasn't sure he'd have ever spoken to anyone the whole year.

He tried to turn things around in the following days and join in games and sport with the other children. But having been raised in isolation, never doing anything he hadn't been ordered to, he didn't know how to play any games. When he tried to ask to join in, his courage failed him. The words caught in his throat and he just stared awkwardly, unnoticed by the happy children playing their mysterious games. He felt the same as he had begging in Diagon Alley and watching other children through shop windows. They were just a few meters away, but they might have been in another world.

Less than a week after arriving at the orphanage, all of the other children had either lost interest, or were actively avoiding him. Only two people still paid him any attention.

One was Meredith. She made a special effort to include Kuro and tried to help him fit in at the centre. She was a Hufflepuff prefect at Hogwarts and was the closest thing Kuro ever had to a big sister. She had looked out for Kuro and defended him during the school year. She was a half-ogre so she had a particular empathy for Kuro's oddness and difficulty with the other children.

Unfortunately, Meredith's favorite thing in the world was quidditch, a sport at which Kuro was shockingly poor. Her efforts to integrate him at St. Brutus' largely involved trying to get him to play. Having no skill on a broom, practice with a ball, or interest in the sport, Kuro was considered a handicap to whichever team he was on. He quickly learned to refuse the invitations and stay at the sidelines to rescue the balls if they flew out of bounds.

The other person taking a peculiar interest in Kuro was Azalea Avery. Azalea was a year younger than Kuro and he had never heard of her before he arrived at St. Brutus'. Within an hour of meeting, though, she had declared herself his mortal enemy.

She was a slight, quiet girl who had her nose fixed permanently in a book. She had long, dark, greasy hair that she let fall in front of her face so that she always seemed to be peering through a curtain of hanging vines. She wore all black, even on the hottest days and shrank from the sun like a vampire, making her pale and unhealthy looking. She cultivated an aura of gloom and had an arsenal of disdainful looks to unleash on anyone that interrupted her reading: from sullen glowers to violent glares. The only person that Azalea had any affection for was her big sister, and in that lay Kuro's problem.

Kuro had met the elder Avery, Belladonna, in Diagon Alley nearly a year ago. She had been stealing brooms, he had been stealing dinner. Their chance encounter had resulted in a fight through the streets and ended with both of them being arrested. Over the following months, Bella's attempts at retribution had Kuro nearly exploded, Bella's eye nearly carved out, both of them in weeks of detention and most of the school believing Kuro to be a pathological thief. It had been a difficult year for both of them, but with help from Meredith, they had eventually agreed to something of a truce.

This cease-fire was not accepted by Azalea. When she saw the scar that Kuro had given Bella, making her one eye look like a cat's, she swore vengeance. Bella had long forgiven Kuro and had even become fond of showing off her scar, but Azalea's fury could not be assuaged. The fact that Kuro had also ended up in the hospital after that fight didn't matter to her, nor that it had been Bella who attacked Kuro in the first place. All she cared about was someone had hurt her sister and still drew breath.

Azalea seemed wary of attacking Kuro. Instead she lurked menacingly. Wherever he went, she seemed to be there, watching him from around a corner or through a window with dark angry eyes. She made a point of reading books with titles such as "Cadmius Carrow's Compendium of Curses," "Famous Murders of the Wizarding World," and "Poisons for All Occasions by Hypatia Flynt."

Kuro took to keeping his most valued things about his person at all times, paranoid that he might have to flee. His twig-like wand was always up one sleeve. His galleon from Mr. Besom, the first gift he'd ever been given, was buried firmly in his deepest pocket. His blue bowler hat, the symbol of his freedom from the curse that had bound him to Phineas Hearn was planted on his head at all times, despite it being oversized and quite absurd. His most valuable possession, his book bag that was considerably larger on the inside, was kept always over one shoulder.

"Five more weeks," he told himself. "Five weeks and I'm back on the train to Hogwarts."

He could hardly believe that was the light at the end of his tunnel. A year ago he'd been forced to go to the school against his will, and was held there like a prisoner. This year was different. He was going back because he wanted to. He wanted to learn and to spend time with his friends. Kuro had been given a taste of what it was like to have a normal life and he wanted more. He had resolved to be a good student and to not have any more adventures or make any new enemies.

He was certain that once she was at school, Azalea would forget all about him and he was hoping that his nemesis from last year, Evelyn Lemieux, would have done the same. He would be unwaveringly uninteresting. He would study and eat and play and everything would be wonderfully ordinary.

The letter in his hands felt like the first piece of that. Mary Akinwande, his friend from Liverpool, had written him back at last. He expected Edward and Charlie to do the same the moment they figured out the muggle postal system.

He ran to his room to open the letter. He wanted to enjoy the experience in private. He sat on his small bed in his cramped little room and admired the envelope. It was crisp and white. Kuro recognized Mary's neat handwriting. She had addressed it herself. It seemed magnificently mundane.

He was about to prise open the envelope when a movement at his window caught his eye. He looked up to find two dark and angry eyes poking up above the window frame. A moment later he was lodged in the rafters, having leaped clear to the ceiling in surprise. Graeae was hissing at him for having disturbed her sleep.

Kuro thought he caught a hint of a smile in the interlopers eyes before they returned to their typical disdainful scowl. "Hello Azalea," Kuro said as calmly as he could. He wished that he had thought to draw the curtains and shut his window.

"What are you doing?" she asked as if accusing him of a crime.

"Checking for spiders," Kuro quipped as he disentangled himself from the rafters.

"I heard you got a letter. Who would send you a letter? Is it your expulsion letter?"

"I'm not getting expelled," Kuro shot back a little too hastily. She'd hit on a fear that she couldn't have known about, but had been plaguing Kuro.

Kuro had nightmares all his life, but the ones this summer had been different. His normal dreams had all been re-living old memories: punishments he'd received, the night the aurors came, witnessing a murder. They were terrible things that tormented his nights, but when he woke he knew that they were over, just memories.

This summer had brought on a new kind of nightly terror. He still had the old dreams, but new ones were also invading his sleep. He dreamed that he was being expelled, or that Hogwarts was closed, or that nobody knew who he was when he arrived and he wasn't allowed in. He woke from these drenched in sweat and shaking with the feeling that all the air had been sucked from his lungs. Worse, he was unable to shake the fear that they were true.

Kuro scowled back at Azalea, angry that she had been able to guess his fears. "Go away!" he snapped. Feeling that he was admitting too much of the effect she'd had on him, he added meekly "Please."

Azalea's eyes narrowed maliciously before sliding down below the window frame and out of sight. Kuro was pleasantly surprised at her quick departure. She was usually harder to shake off, although it was possible she was still lurking in the garden beneath his window.

Kuro went to shut his window but didn't make it there. He dove away and back behind his bed as a huge hand reached in to hold the window open and a monstrous visage with jagged pointed teeth thrust itself in and shouted "Kuro!"

"Hello Meredith," Kuro said as he fished the increasingly crumpled envelope from beneath his bed. He had dropped it in his retreat.

"I heard you got mail," Meredith replied brightly, leaning her head into his room to try to see him behind the bed. "Who's it from?"

"Mary," Kuro replied as he settled onto his bed with the reclaimed letter. He did his best not to disturb Graeae who, being stone deaf, was even more easily startled than he was.

"That's great!" Meredith beamed. "How is she?"

"I don't know," sighed Kuro, trying to keep frustration out of his voice. "I haven't had a chance to open it yet.

Meredith, to her credit, was very apologetic. "Oh! I'm sorry. I'll leave you to it. I just wanted to say you should write back as soon as you can. She won't say it but Miss Moody fancies Mr. Thomas, the postman. We all try to get as much post as we can while we're here so he comes by more often."

Kuro stopped picking open the flap on the envelope and scowled quizzically at Meredith. "If she likes him, why does she erase his memories every time he comes over?"

"Well, it's the law. She has to. She's got to keep us a secret." Meredith explained.

"It's a dumb law," replied Kuro finally tearing into his envelope and freeing his letter. Kuro didn't have much love for the law, and especially disliked the people that enforced it, the aurors.

He had been captured by them last year, interrogated, and forced into Hogwarts. They had let his master escape from Azkaban Prison and kidnap him. The people that had rescued him were two teachers and a social worker. The aurors hadn't shown up until it was all over. All they did was drag away Hearn and take the credit. As far as Kuro was concerned, the only thing they were good at was being violent and frightening.

The head of the aurors was the worst of them, Harry Potter. He was supposed to be some sort of prodigy and war hero. The stories said he single-handedly defeated Lord Voldemort, the greatest dark wizard of all time, when he was just seventeen. He was celebrated as the 'Chosen One' and 'The Boy Who Lived', the hero of the winning team.

To anyone on the wrong side that battle, he was called 'The Hound.' Any witch or wizard with ties to Voldemort or his lieutenants, the Death Eaters, lived in fear of Potter. He was a relentless and merciless hunter of 'dark wizards,' and the ministry was pretty quick to label anyone they didn't like a dark wizard.

Potter was the one that had taken Kuro prisoner. He had sent Kuro to Hogwart's pretending that it was a great favor. Really Potter was just keeping Kuro there in hopes of getting more information from him or to use him as a way to control Hearn. Potter had freed Kuro from the curse that bound him to his master, but only after Kuro was no longer of any value to the aurors. Potter was cunning and manipulative but acted like he was some wonderful savior.

Kuro pushed away his angry thoughts and returned to his letter. He wouldn't let Potter taint this moment.

The letter was printed out on a page of bright white paper with thin, evenly spaced blue lines.

"Dear Kuro,

I've never gotten a real letter before. It's kind of fun. Mostly we muggles just send texts and emails. It's a lot faster. I guess you don't have a computer at your place.

I'm glad that it's nice there. I was worried that it would be like the horrible orphanages in stories. I'm jealous that you have your own room. My parents gave my old room to my younger sister so I have to share with her for the summer. I miss the curtains around our school beds already.

I think Edward is trying to write you. He's already sent me two owls asking me how to send a letter by muggle post. My parents are really angry because my brothers and sisters can't know about wizards yet so they have to make up stories about the owls showing up. My littlest brother is getting wise. He reads a lot of fairy stories. I think he's going to be really upset when he finds out I'm a witch and he isn't a wizard.

I'm actually looking forward to going back to school. Life here seems so boring after Hogwarts. My old friends just talk about music and boys I don't know and I have to lie to them about the school I go to. They have no idea about magic. I really miss doing magic. Are you allowed to do any there? They say I'll get in a lot of trouble if I cast spells outside of school.

Write back soon.

Sincerely,

Mary Akinwande"

"So?" asked Meredith, who had rested her chin on her hands and waited while Kuro read.

Kuro looked up and found that he was smiling broadly. "She's good." he said simply. Without further hesitation he pulled piece of parchment from a drawer in his book bag, fetched one of the pens Mary had given him for Christmas, and set about writing a return letter.

"Just five more weeks," he thought.


	3. Chapter 3 - Robes for Odd Occasions

Kuro erased a number twenty-three which was written in chalk on his wall and replaced it with twenty-two. He was counting down the days until he would return to school.

He had settled into a routine of boredom at St. Brutus's: have breakfast, wait for mail, eat lunch, read some schoolbooks, avoid Azalea, help cook supper, lie on the roof with Graeae, sleep, repeat. Everything was agonizingly peaceful and predictable.

He had only received only one more letter since Mary's. It was from Edward and it was completely blank. It seemed that Edward had sorted out how to send letters, but not to write them.

Kuro was trying his best to prepare for school. He had failed Transfiguration rather disastrously the previous year and didn't want to repeat that. Despite his best efforts though, the text remained indecipherable. He wondered if the words in it had all been scrambled by a jinx.

He tried repeatedly, but never made any progress. Instead, he found himself drawn back to his other books and the spells he did know. He went over the charms he could cast and the potions he could brew. He flipped through 'The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection' fondly remembering his favorite teacher, Ms. Crawley.

She was the one who had taught him to cast spells with his wand, where in every other class he just blew himself up. He wondered where she was. She wasn't returning to teach because it came out she had once worked with Phineas Hearn and someone named Roche in the war. He hoped she was okay and worried about who might replace her.

He also read and reread one section of his history text. He had barely noticed when it had come up in class, but now it fascinated him: the history of elves.

Kuro learned from Ms. Crawley that he was the result of an experiment to make a creature that was half-elf and half-wizard. The plan was to create something with all the strengths of wizards and elves combined, and be completely obedient to its master. Kuro was the closest thing they had come to a success, though Phineas considered him a complete failure. Something he had often reminded Kuro of. 

Kuro couldn't disagree. He wasn't powerful or strong, or very good at magic at all. He was small and funny looking and, as it turned out, not very obedient.

The section about elves in his text was short. The chapter was mostly about the history of wands and elves were little more than a footnote. The book said that thousands of years ago, elves had ruled over wizards with their powerful and terrible magic. Wizards invented wands and defeated them in a great rebellion. The few surviving elves swore to serve the wizards in exchange for their lives.

Kuro couldn't believe that the child-sized, big-nosed, bat-eared house elves that cooked and did laundry at Hogwarts could have ever ruled over anything. They seemed meek and weak and pathetic. They were the only things he could think of that were less intimidating than he was. Still, this was his heritage.

Today though, he was not going to read about elves. He was determined that today would be the day that transfiguration made sense. As he left the dining hall from breakfast, his plans were thwarted by the approach of Mr. Thomas.

He had the same bemused expression as always and was being led with care by Miss Moody to the manor, as usual. What was not normal was the stack of thick envelopes in his hand.

"Hogwarts letters" Miss Moody said brightly, sensing Kuro's curiosity. "Tell the others for me, dear. We're heading to Diagon Alley before lunch. I'd like to beat the rush."

Kuro dashed back into the breakfast hall to give the news. It was the first time since he'd arrived that the other children were happy to hear what he had to say. The room was instantly buzzing with excitement. Chairs scraped and breakfasts were abandoned as the students rushed out to meet the postman.

Instead of running for the door like the others, Azalea pounced on Kuro and grabbed him by the collar. "Does he have mine?" she demanded. "Does he have one for me."

"I don't know," sputtered Kuro, surprised by the assault. "You should ask him."

She did not move to meet the postman. She stood, glued to the spot, hands clutched around Kuro's collar. Her eyes were filled with hope and trepidation.

Kuro scoured his mind for a reason for Azalea's odd behavior. She was already eleven. If she lived in a normal place with owl post she'd had received her letter a week ago, on her birthday. Witches and wizards pretty much had to go to Hogwarts. That letter was coming whether she wanted it or not. He couldn't fathom why she was so panicked.

Then something struck him: her trembling hands and frightened eyes made Azalea seem terribly ordinary, terribly mundane. Perhaps she was afraid that the letter wasn't coming because she feared she wasn't a witch. Kuro wondered if all wizarding kids had that fear, that their letter would never come, that they were a squib and they would have to go and live among the muggles.

He felt a small glimmer of empathy towards the anxious girl in front of him. He might have even moved to comfort her had he not been knocked ungraciously aside from behind.

As he stumbled and danced in an attempt to avoid crashing into a table full of abandoned breakfasts, he heard Bella's voice proclaim, "Azalea Avery, St. Brutus' Center for Boys, Girl's Dormitory, Third room on the right, 23 Potter Cl, Guilford, Surrey." She paused dramatically, "There's a letter for you."

The rest of the orphanage erupted in applause as they streamed into the dining hall. The older children clapped her on the back and congratulated her. The younger children bemoaned their youth and demanded to see the letter.

Azalea's relief and joy was palpable. She smiled broadly and tears streamed down her face as she hungrily tore open the envelope. Even with the excitement around her, it was as if it wouldn't be real to her until she had read the words.

Kuro felt out of place in the celebration. His own Hogwarts acceptance had much less fanfare. He was in a prison cell at the time and the Headmistress, Professor McGonagall, had been forced to accept him by the head of the aurors.

The celebrations were kept quite short. Miss Moody swept into the hall to announce that all of the students needed to get ready for travel. She wanted to be in Diagon Alley before lunchtime. The bus was already on its way to fetch them.

The bus, as it happened, was an ordinary muggle coach. It stopped at the end of Potter Close and allowed the fourteen students and their matron to pile in. The driver seemed a bit dazed, and Kuro suspected that the Ministry might have toyed with his mind a bit to charter the bus.

Other children travelled to Diagon Alley via the flue network or by apparition. Both were much faster, but the security on the orphanage prevented either from being an option. Kuro also imagined that enough flue powder for all of them would have been expensive, and expecting Miss Moody to apparate more than a dozen children back and forth was probably a bit much to ask.

Kuro sat alone at the back of the bus reading over the supplies he would need for the year. Much was the same as the previous year, just a few new textbooks and some new potion supplies. His old uniform robes still fit him, but few of his various tools and implements needed replacing. One odd item on the list stood out, though: dress robes. What could he possibly need dress robes for?

He pondered this while they drove through Guilford. As they passed High Street, Kuro was distracted from his musings by a familiar site: a cafe he recognized. He had taken cakes from it regularly when he had lived in Knockturn Alley. One of the many secret entrances to the alley exited onto this street. There was a tiny space between two buildings that you had to slide through left-hand first. It emptied into Knockturn alley beside an apothecary that specialized in rare poisons.

Kuro felt very smug as their bus trundled along the old streets and then onto the highway toward London. They would likely be on this lumbering muggle coach for over an hour to get somewhere Kuro could be in minutes.

The orphans' initial excitement for the excursion wore off quickly. There is something about the stuffy interior of a poorly maintained coach that drains the enthusiasm out of a person. The whole collection of students were dozing, complaining, and fidgeting impatiently by the time the coach finally pulled up outside the Leaky Cauldron, a wizarding pub which guarded the entrance to Diagon Alley.

The promise of fresh air and freedom revitalized the occupants of the bus. There was a mad clamoring to escape, but Miss Moody blocked the exit. "Before we get off the bus, a few ground rules," she said sweetly.

"We know," interrupted the older students.

"Some of you do not." Snapped Miss Moody, suddenly very brusk. "And many of you seem to forget minutes after exiting the bus every year." She said the last two words with accusational emphasis and a pointed glare at Bella.

Having silenced the objectors, she settled back into her normal, comfortingly pleasant tone. "Everyone is to stay together while we gather school supplies. There is to be no wandering off. Once we are finished, you are free to explore, but you must stay in pairs at all times, stay out of Gringotts and away from Knockturn Alley. Do you understand?"

"Yes Miss Moody," responded a chorus of reluctant agreement.

They all shuffled off the bus and into the small courtyard behind the Leaky Cauldron. Normally the courtyard would be a dead end, with nothing but trash bins and brick walls. Only someone with a wand that knew the correct brick to tap would be able to find and open the secret archway into Diagon Alley. On Hogwarts letter day, though, there were so many families coming and going that the passage barely ever had time to close. They had to queue to get through.

Passing through the archway was like entering a different world. The noisy London streets with their honking cars, besuited businessmen, and roving hooligans were instantly forgotten in a swirl of silk and velvet robes. The narrow cobblestone street was filled with witches and wizards all bustling about their business, many of them scowling at the throngs of youthful invaders that swarmed into their places of business at this time of year.

The other orphans pointed and squealed with glee at the shops. They all began chattering excitedly about which they would visit, arguing whether to spend time in Weasley's Wizard Wheezes joke shop, to look at the new brooms in Quality Quidditch Supplies, or to play with the creatures in the Magical Menagerie.

Their banter quickly faded into the background noise. Kuro didn't share the excitement of the others. These places weren't rare treats or exotic destinations. Kuro had spent years begging and picking pockets on this street. He knew every crooked brick and weary timber that made up the place. Kuro did not have a lot of good memories about Diagon or it's more dismal partner, Knockturn, but they were familiar and comfortable. This was home.

He didn't know that he had missed the place until he felt the cobblestone beneath his feet and smelled the mix of pipe smoke, wand varnish, and broom straw that pervaded the street. He knew the bustle in the street like a familiar dance. There was a flow and rhythm to it that he could almost sing along to. He was tempted to slip into the crowd and vanish. He could dip a hand into pockets here and there, just for old times sake.

The notion that it was a choice now, that he didn't have to steal to eat anymore made him feel powerful. He could take something just because he wanted it, with no curse to punish him or fear of going hungry if he failed. He saw an especially vulnerable woman walk by almost within reach. She was wealthy and distracted, trying to wrangle too many bags and an uncooperative owl.

Kuro slid out into the throng and with the lightest touch, liberated her of a handful of sickles. He grinned and pocketed it. 'Still got it' he thought. But as his hand hit the bottom of his pocket, he felt the hard round edge of his galleon and his stomach lurched unpleasantly. His old curse wasn't forcing him to punish himself, but a sudden surge of guilt was.

Mr. Besom had given him that galleon. He had been kind and generous and believed that Kuro was a good person. Now Kuro was stealing right outside Besom's broom shop for no reason at all. He was being the same sort of selfish thief that Bella had been the year before when she had robbed Mr. Besom just for a chance to win at quidditch.

Grudgingly, Kuro conceded to his nagging conscience and went about the much more difficult task of putting the money back. He hastily scribbled an apology note and strode up near to the woman. Then he created a small distraction. It only took a little, just enough that the rhythm of the street skipped a beat. He tossed a tiny stone at her already fretful owl, tugged on the robe of a passing shopper with overfull bags, and waited for the dominoes to fall.

The two women fell into each other as they tried to keep their balance, and Kuro's ill deed was undone while they argued over who was more sorry for the collision.

Kuro was curious how the owl carrying lady would react to finding a note that said "sorry" in her pocket and it made him smile. He scolded himself for enjoying the endeavor so much, but he couldn't help it. There was a thrill to it he couldn't deny. Perhaps it would be alright to keep pickpocketing if he stuck to putting things into pockets instead of taking them out.

He caught up to the other orphans in Olivander's wand shop. It was one of the oldest shops in Diagon Alley, having been founded in Roman days. It had burned down half a dozen times, been blown up, looted, abandoned, reclaimed and rebuilt repeatedly over its history. At the moment it looked fresh and new, having been recently renovated after it was gutted in the war a decade prior.

The current proprietor, Corliss Olivander, was a fretful and energetic young woman that had taken over for her aging uncle. She wore very businesslike grey tweed robes and a full beard and mustache while she worked, believing that it was appropriate for such a distinguished station.

Kuro didn't know her well, but he had always enjoyed watching her through the windows of the store. She flitted through the shelves like a butterfly, from box to box seeking out the right wand for the customer. She would hand over a prospective wand with reverence and delicacy, then snatch it away moments later asserting that it was all wrong. She seemed quite mad, but was well respected for her ability to select wands for her clients.

All of the other orphans were crammed into the shop to watch as Azalea received her first wand. Kuro's absence had, unsurprisingly, gone unnoticed. He was both relieved and disappointed. He settled just inside the door and waited for the odd ceremony to complete.

"Elm and dragon heartstring," said Corliss as she handed over what was probably the eighth or ninth option. "Seventeen centimeters, a fine wand for charms."

Azalea picked it up cautiously and started to wave it in a gentle figure-eight. Before she could finish even a single circuit, Corliss snatched it away and disappeared back into the shelves muttering to herself, "How could I be so silly. Ridiculous, really. Elm and dragon for someone like her? Embarrassing."

It went on like this for some time. Kuro thought it a very different experience from his wanding. 

His wand had come from the lost and found at the ministry. He had been given several dozen to try, but unlike these fresh new wands, the lost wands had become temperamental in their long abandonment. Kuro's stumpy wand of pine and elf hair was the first one that hadn't tried to escape or maim him upon picking it up. This ceremony Azalea was going through seemed terribly tame and dull in comparison.

Kuro's reflections were interrupted by a vibrant shower of magenta sparks and a roar of applause from the other children indicating that a wand had chosen Azalea. It was flat black, precisely carved, and sharply pointed. Kuro thought it suited Azalea rather well.

"Ebony and unicorn hair, nineteen centimeters. I should have guessed from the start." Corliss shook her head as she spoke in disbelief at not having picked it first. "Elegant and precise, should be very good for transfiguration work. My uncle made that one, it's been waiting for a master for quite some time. Use it well."

The wand was wrapped and delicately returned to its wooden box before being handed over ceremoniously to Azalea. She took the box gently with both hands and held it close to her chest, like she was both terrified to break it and fearful someone would steal her precious new partner.

The visits to other shops were not so momentous. Stacks of parchment, ink and quills were acquired. Ingredients for potions were collected. Astronomical instruments and brewing implements were replaced and upgraded, and a crate of textbooks was purchased. Most were ordered for delivery. Miss Moody explained that it would save them having to carry the heavy loads around, but there were some winks and nudges between the older students. They suspected her of manufacturing more reasons for Mr. Thomas to visit.

Kuro followed along from shop to shop, quiet, bored and confused as to why the whole excursion had even been necessary. Miss Moody could have easily come on her own and saved the trouble and expense of wrangling over a dozen teenagers through cramped shops. His answer came in the last shop they were to visit, Madame Malkin's Robes for All Occasions. It seemed that everyone had to get dress robes for the coming year.

Kuro had never been in Madame Malkin's. Like most of the shops in Diagon, Kuro knew it only from the outside. From the street, it had sparked curiosity and jealousy. Behind its doors were warm, clean robes in a rainbow of colours and textures the likes of which Kuro was only able to touch when slipping something out of a pocket. Now allowed inside, the luster was quickly wearing off.

There were far fewer of the nice robes than Kuro had imagined. The thick, sturdy ones that would keep you warm in the winter occupied only a small rack in a corner. The comfortable, casual robes good for running and jumping were few and far between. Instead the space was dominated by mannequins displaying long flowing robes adorned with crystals, beads and flowers, gossamer tornados of silk, and form-fitting satin gowns. They were either so short as to leave legs exposed to the cold air or so long that you would trip over them. They were all made of fabrics so delicate they'd tear if breathed on too hard. Kuro wondered how heavily charmed they had to be to keep from falling apart as their enchanted mannequin models shifted from pose to pose.

Madame Malkin was taking each student's measurements, in turn. She was a squat, aged witch with a pointed nose and three pairs of spectacles which she switched between constantly. She was very polite and friendly, but had an odd way of pointing out everyone's flaws. She tutted quietly to herself every now and then when reading off a measurement and said comforting things like "Not to worry we can always shorten arms," and "Well that's fine dear we have some very slimming robes this season," and "Lots of very lovely witches have small chests."

It was probably the worst for Meredith. More than a head taller than the next tallest student, and almost twice as broad, there wasn't much in the store that would come close to fitting her. Once measured, she was led past the elegant, flowing display gowns to a rather dull looking rack. Meredith looked back at the other gowns with such longing it hurt Kuro's chest. Normally unwaveringly forceful and passionate, she looked small and sad as she chose between the two shapeless tarpolines she was being offered.

By the time it was Kuro's turn under Malkin's tape, he was struggling against the urge to kick her in the shins. She was awful and he didn't understand why anyone went through this voluntarily. His previous robe shopping experience seemed vastly preferable and that had involved digging through an ancient and mouldering pile of used robes in the Ministry lost and found.

Malkin's first word's to Kuro did nothing to improve his attitude, "Are you excited to be starting your first year at Hogwarts?" she asked as if speaking to a toddler.

A wave of chuckles and giggles passed over the other orphans who had overheard and Azalea snorted with laughter. It was all Kuro could do not to storm out of the shop. "I'm in second year," Kuro grumbled.

"Oh, are you?" She smiled condescendingly at Kuro and looked to Miss Moody for confirmation. Even after a polite nod from Miss Moody, Malkin seemed dubious and looked ready to call for a third opinion. "And what house are you in my dear?"

"Hufflepuff," replied Kuro, failing to hide his distaste for the tailor.

"Very good," she replied still sounding unconvinced. "Very good house. I was a Ravenclaw, myself. Come this way." She led him to the back of the store where a sign with large colourful letters read 'Children's.'

Madame Malkin pulled four sets of robes off the rack and asked Kuro to pick. He instinct was to pick at random. He did not want to be in the shop a minute longer and didn't want to oblige Malkin in any way. However, he was so confused by the offering, he couldn't choose.

They were indistinguishable from one another. Kuro couldn't see a single difference. They were all black with a collared under-tunic and a black bowtie. He ended up examining each one very closely just trying to sort out what he was meant to be comparing them on. He looked around to the other boys in hopes of finding some guidance, but found they were all holding similar sets.

In the end, Kuro picked the third one that Malkin had offered because she seemed least enthusiastic about that option. She stole it back from him grumpily to make alterations, keeping no secret of her opinion of his choice.

Finally finished with the gaggle of orphans, she encouraged them out of her shop thus liberating them from their scholastic errands. Freed from the confines of Malkin's shop and released back into the welcoming open air of Diagon Alley, Miss Moody freed the children to wander on their own. "Stay in pairs and be in front of Gringotts by four!" she reminded as children vanished into the crowd.


	4. Chapter 4 - Knockturn Alley

Kuro quickly found himself alone. Forgotten by the other children and overlooked by the matron. He felt slightly abandoned, but that was quickly replaced by a swelling sense of freedom. He was back on his home ground, unburdened and unsupervised. He allowed himself to be swallowed by the stream of wizards and carried along the street. He moved like a cat: in and around people, watching and listening like he used to. He heard the gossip of the street, of marriages and births and weather and food.

He walked along, unnoticed and unregarded. He blended in with the other students, but drew no notice from the shopkeepers as he knew better than to smear windows with his face while goggling at displays or to linger indecisively in lines while choosing ice cream. In short, he knew how to avoid annoying the residents.

He sidled up to a cafe, sat at an empty table and took ownership of an abandoned pastie and paper. He cheerfully nibbled away as he leafed through the Daily Prophet from where its previous owner had left it open. World quidditch finals were approaching so a frustrating portion of the paper was dedicated to wild speculation and inspiring biographies of players. He flipped quickly past the pages filled with moving images of spectacular goals and daring saves with disinterest.

He finished his pastie and shut the paper, leaving it for the next visitor to the cafe. He was about to leave when he noticed the front page headline. "Potter to Leave Post" it said in large capital letters. He snatched up the paper again and began reading.

"Harry Potter, current head of the aurors, has announced his retirement from the position citing a desire to spend more time with his growing family.

'I'm proud of what we've accomplished in my time here, but I'm ready to hand things off. I'm not sure where I'll go next, but I know the aurors will be in good hands.' said Potter during a formal announcement during which Minister Shacklebolt presented him with the Order of Merlin, First Class for his service.

No word yet on who will be replacing Potter in the top post at the Auror Office."

The story put Kuro in a fine mood. Potter was done being an auror, which meant that he wouldn't be meddling in Kuro's affairs any longer. Kuro was going back to Hogwarts free of Potter, free of Phineas, free to be an ordinary student.

Energized by the good news, he climbed up on some of his favorite roofs. He watched the shopkeepers as they tried to manage their annoyance at the surge of children cluttering their shops and interfering with business. Freed from the slow amble of the street below, Kuro finally had a chance to let loose and run. He let his magic flow, let his body grow light and the air behind him build and then he was off like a shot.

St. Brutus' was large and lovely, but it wasn't open. He couldn't really run there. Here in Diagon, he could bound across roofs and leap between buildings. For two whole hours, he was out of his cage, and he wasn't going to waste it. He took a sharp left at Knockturn and practically flew down half its length. He leaped from a tall tenement and landed gently on a cushion of air in the middle of the dingy street.

Knockturn wasn't crowded like Diagon. People didn't go there if they had a choice. It was full of the poor and the mad and the criminal. Most of its residents were all three. The shops here were fewer and of the kind that wouldn't be accepted on a proper street like Diagon Alley. The most upstanding of them were merely unpleasant, selling malodorous things like dragon dung and chimera entrails. The less reputable shops like Borgin and Burkes sold items of questionable value to upstanding citizens, like cursed antiques and rare poisons. Other shops did not have signs, or windows, or names. Those dealt in still darker things, like smuggled goods, illegal spells, and lives.

Kuro wasn't here to shop. He was here because this was home. He wanted to know that it was as he left it, miserable, dismal and full of secrets only he knew.

He checked on the old passageways out to the muggle world. He slid down a sewer cover and out into the back room of a record store in Cardiff. Then, back through and down a mailbox which let out near a bakery in Glasgow. He ducked through a closet in an abandoned flat the led to a train station in Liverpool.

He considered for a moment the possibility of going to see Mary. She lived in Liverpool, but Kuro didn't know how to find her. He would see her soon, anyway, he told himself as he ducked back beneath a news stand and out of the closet in Knockturn.

A few minor diversions down culverts and between pavements cracks later, Kuro reached his final destination, his church.

He skipped across the threshold and between the charred timbers that littered the burned out church that Kuro had called home for six months the previous year. He had only lived there a short time, but it was the only place he had chosen for himself to live and he felt a strong connection to it.

It was also the place he had made his first friend, who he called on now. "Father John," he shouted.

"Kuuuurooooooo!" a pained wail broke the still silence of the church like a rake across a chalkboard. "My boy, it's so good to see you. What are you doing here?"

Kuro uncovered his ears and smiled up at his old friend and protector as the ghastly spirit drifted in through a wall. "Shopping trip for school. I'm starting my second year soon."

Father John was a ghost. He was mostly transparent and was always dressed in robes for conducting a service. He was a very pleasant and friendly ghost, but few took the time to find out, as his head was a skinless skull eternally ablaze and he could only speak in blood-curdling screams.

"I'm so glad to hear it." A murder of crows on a nearby roof took to the sky to escape Father John's screams. "I'm very proud of you."

He reached down to muss Kuro's hair, but being a ghost, his hand passed right through, making Kuro feel like there were icicles growing behind his eyes. "I had a bit of time, so I wanted to come and say hello. And maybe visit my old room."

"Such a thoughtful boy." The deceased priest's skull burned a little more gently for a moment, in a way that implied he was pleased. "You know you're always welcome here."

He spoke for a little longer with father John, sharing stories of his past year at Hogwarts and the orphanage. It was the only relationship Kuro had where he did most of the talking.

After they parted, Kuro took a quick trip to visit his old room, a hidden wine cellar beneath the pulpit. He climbed down the secret ladder and pulled out his wand.

"Lumos." he said and the tip of his crooked little pine wand lit up, filling his dank little cellar with soft white light.

He only had a couple of moments to look about nostalgically before a sound like a cracking branch split the air and a looming dark form snapped into the space in front of him.

It was a man. He was poised for combat, wand at the ready, scanning the shadowy chamber for threats. He wore the long black leather coat of an auror. His hair was dark and untidy. His green eyes glowed behind his round glasses in the wandlight and there was a lightning shaped scar on his forehead.

"Harry Potter? What are you doing here?" Kuro demanded.

"Kuro?" Potter replied in confusion. "What do you mean am I doing here? What are you doing here?"

"This is my room," replied Kuro indignantly. "I was visiting."

"Is everything okay? Are you hurt" Potter was still on his guard, acting as though something could leap out of the shadows and attack them.

"What? No, I'm fine. Go away." Kuro wasn't fond of Potter, and he liked him a lot less when he appeared out of thin air in places Kuro considered his own.

"You cast a spell. Aren't you in danger?" asked potter, easing his guard a little.

"What? No. How do you know I cast a spell? Are you spying on me?"

"The trace," Potter said as if it was a meaningful explanation.

"The what?" Kuro was annoyed. His visit had been ruined and now it seemed that Potter had him under surveillance.

"The trace..." Potter squinted at Kuro curiously. "Don't you know about the trace?"

Kuro wanted to demand that Potter left him alone. He wanted to have some peace and quiet in his old room before having to get back on a bus full of children that would probably tease him for being mistaken for a first year. Something in Potter's tone gave him pause, though. "No... I don't. Should I?"

"Of course you should," Potter said mockingly. "Every child over eleven has the trace on them in accordance with the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery."

"The what?" Kuro didn't know what Potter was talking about, but he understood well enough to not like the sounds of it.

Potter free hand went to his forehead. "Did nobody seriously ever tell you? It's one of the most basic rules of wizard society."

Kuro felt embarrassed and stupid. He knew that he had missed a lot of what normal children learned when they were young, but he didn't like being reminded of his isolated upbringing so bluntly. He crossed his arms and slumped against a wall. "Well I haven't spent much time following the rules of wizards," he grumbled.

Potter lit up his own wand, crossed his own arms and leaned against the opposite wall, mirroring Kuro. He sighed deeply in frustration before beginning to explain. "The Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery is the law that makes it illegal for children to cast spells outside of school. From the time a wizard get his first wand until they come of age at seventeen they can be reprimanded, fined, or expelled for casting spells while away from Hogwarts."

Potter waited for Kuro to absorb the information while stared pointedly at Kuro's still glowing wand. Kuro glowered at Potter but doused the light.

"The trace is a spell that sends an alarm to the ministry if any child casts a spell," Potter continued. "Children are supposed to know that the only reason they're allowed to cast spells is in life and death situations. I thought you were in real trouble."

There were a few problems with Potter's explanation. The biggest being that Kuro had cast a bunch of spells that day. He'd used magic to run and jump and climb up and down both streets. He thought better than to tell Potter about crimes he wasn't already aware of and said nothing about that.

The other oddity he did bring up. "So why are you here?" Kuro demanded.

"Like I said, I thought you were in trouble. I came to save you," Potter lied unconvincingly.

"Aren't you retired?" asked Kuro.

"Not yet," he said defensively, "Not for a couple more weeks. How do you know about that?"

"I read the paper," said Kuro, trying to sound confident and intelligent instead of petulant, which is how he felt. "And if you're not retired, why didn't you send a normal auror? Why did you come yourself? Shouldn't you be doing more important things?"

Potter shuffled a bit and tripped over his tongue before spitting out a passable explanation. "Well, I knew the St. Brutus students would be here today. I'm one of the founders of the orphanage. I worry about you kids."

Kuro wasn't convinced at all. Potter was clearly still keeping close tabs on him. Kuro was free from his master, but not free from much else. He was constantly being stalked and imprisoned in the guise of protection, and now he discovered that casting a single spell was both illegal, and a surefire way to summon one of his least favorite people.

"Am I under arrest again?" Kuro asked impatiently.

Potter sighed. "No, I'm not going to bother with that much paperwork for a light charm. Just use a torch next time, okay?"

"Can I leave then? I need to get back. I don't want to be late." This was somewhat true but also seemed a very good excuse to leave the company of the auror.

"Yes, of course we should get you back." Potter put his wand to the top of his head and a disguise unfurled over him. He was transformed into an aging, portly man with a bushy mustache and a tweed suit. It was the same disguise Kuro had seen him use of a few occasions before. "I'll walk you back.

Kuro trudged indignantly behind the disguised Potter as he led them back up to Diagon Alley. He was annoyed that he had to waste so much of his precious free time walking at normal speed, when he could have run back in a matter of minutes.

Kuro's spirits were lifted slightly by the fact that absolutely nobody in Knockturn was fooled by the disguise.

Potter walked liked an auror, chest first, as if he owned the street. His eyes were sharp and suspicious, but unlike everyone else on the street he wasn't on the lookout for aurors. It made him look alien in this alley. Kuro also suspected that Potter's go-to disguise was well known among those that worried about undercover officers.

As people caught sight of Potter, their postures and bearing changed. Their conversations became louder and everyone appeared to be speaking only of trivial things like the weather and quidditch.

Alkali Midge, who Kuro knew to be a dealer of illicit herbs, even went so far as to tip his hat to Potter before striding cheerfully into the dragon dung dispensary where he pretended to have business. Potter appeared oblivious to what was going on around him, a fact that Kuro enjoyed immensely.

Kuro followed Potter out of the dingy and largely empty Knockturn back into the bustle of Diagon Alley. The street was now absolutely swarming with students. Hogwarts letter day was always an awful day to be there.

They pressed through the crowd toward Gringotts Bank. Potter let Kuro go free a few yards from where the other orphans had started to gather. His absence clearly hadn't been noted, and return went largely unnoticed. The only one to comment was Azalea.

"You weren't with a partner," she said threateningly, as though she might tell the matron.

Kuro said nothing.

"Who was that man you were with?" she asked suspiciously. "The muggle-looking man in the brown suit?"

Kuro told her the most absurd, least believable thing he could think of. "Oh him? That was Harry Potter."


	5. Chapter 5 - A Half-breed's Blood

Kuro woke up at the crack of dawn and leaped from his bed. He pulled out a rag and a piece of chalk and took enormous joy in replacing the number one written on his wall with a very large round zero.

It was September first at last. Today he would be leaving the stifling boredom and confinement of St. Brutus' and going back to Hogwarts. He'd packed and repacked a dozen times over the past week, which seemed to drag on for an eternity. But that was all over. In a few hours he'd be on the train with his friends and off to the grand castle that was Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

He threw on his muggle clothes and his blue bowler hat for travel and put his last few things in his trunk. He didn't need the trunk, really. Everything he owned would fit in his book bag. He had learned not to draw too much attention to that satchel, though. It was a rare enough object that people became suspicious of him for having it. The only thing he had in that bag now was his cat, Graeae. She was nestled in a pile of blankets on one of the bottom shelves, still fast asleep.

He hauled his trunk out to the yard to wait for the others. Kuro expected to be the first one there, but he was mistaken. Azalea had her trunk sitting right beside the door to leave and was pacing back and forth. She looked agitated. She smoothed and then mussed her hair repeatedly and chewed on her fingernails continuously.

"Good morning!" said Kuro brightly, and was rewarded for his friendliness by having Azalea jump so violently in surprise that she tripped and landed in a flower bed.

"Hi," she replied absently.

Kuro was amused to see her so out of sorts. She was normally so calm and collected. Now she was so distracted that she was forgetting to glare viciously at Kuro, or to insult him or make any threats.

"The sorting ceremony," she blurted and then paused for a moment as if to brace herself. "What's it like?"

Kuro recalled his sorting the year before. None of the first-years seemed to know what it involved and there had been a lot of wild speculation. Everything from written exams to dangerous obstacle courses were suggested.

"It's pretty quick," answered Kuro, trying to hide a devious grin. "They lock you in a cage with one of each of the house animals: an eagle, a snake, a badger, and a lion. Your house is decided by the first one to draw blood."

Azalea froze in her tracks. She looked terrified for a few moments before her familiar scowl returned. "You're lying," she accused.

Kuro couldn't keep up the deception at all. "Yes, I am," he laughed.

"Why?" demanded Azalea angrily. "Why won't anyone tell me?"

"I don't know," admitted Kuro. "But nobody knew in my year, either, and I think Bella would murder me if I told you."

"That wouldn't be so bad," replied Azalea viciously.

As the sun crept higher, the grounds of St. Brutus' filled with golden light and the other students wearily hauled their trunks out to the front door.

There was no chartered bus for them today. They would be taking normal muggle transit to Kings Cross station in London, where they would board the Hogwarts Express. Miss Moody saw them off with hugs and packed lunches, leaving the older students to lead the way.

Kuro was so happy to be headed back to school that even the shattered windows and peeling graffiti along Potter Close seemed bright and cheery. The smelly bus filled with drowsy commuters seemed a fine chariot and the Guilford station a gleaming palace of hope and joy.

The fourteen students piled out of the bus and up to the ticket booth. The oldest of them, Jonathan FitzGerald, slid over a pile of muggle money and asked for fourteen tickets to London on the 8:15 and then the illusion came crashing down.

"Sorry mate," replied the bored looking muggle in the booth. "There's been an accident. Train's delayed at least a couple hours."

"No!" Bella shouted angrily as she pushed her way forward. "We have to be at King's Cross by eleven. We have a train to catch."

"Nothing doing, lass," the man sighed. He looked as though he'd had this conversation a hundred times already that day. "We've a bus that'll get you in a bit after one that still has some space on it. That's the best I've got."

Bella looked ready to burn the whole station down if it would get them on a train. Her hand twitched toward the wand in her jeans pocket, but Meredith interceded. "It's okay," she said calmly, putting a big hand on Bella's shoulder. "We'll get a train when it comes and take the overnight to Hogsmeade. We'll be at school by tomorrow morning."

Bella threw the hand off. "My sister is not missing her sorting. We are getting there even if I have to steal a broom and fly her, myself."

Jonathan sneered. "We all know how it's going to go," he said, grabbing Kuro's bowler hat, and shoving it onto Azaleas head. He threw up his hands and shouted "Slytherin!"

People were starting to stare at the odd collection of children shouting strange words. Meredith tried and failed to look apologetic and unassuming as they pushed Bella and the younger kids to a more private corner.

Bella and Meredith continued to argue in hushed tones while everyone else tried to look ordinary and muggle-like.

Kuro wasn't happy about having to wait, either. He had been looking forward to the train ride with his friends for weeks. He sighed with resigned defeat and sat on his trunk with his chin on his fists. He sat staring at the flashing 'Delayed' sign on the schedule display while the minutes ticked by.

A little over an hour later, a strange croaking yowl shook him from his sulking. It was coming from his bag, Graeae had woken up. He reached his arm into his bag to comfort her. Putting his hand through the little opening into the much larger space reminded him of something. There were other ways to get to Platform Nine and Three-Quarters.

"I know another way there," Kuro said quietly, mostly to himself.

Azalea was the only one to notice he had spoken. "What did you say?" she asked suspiciously.

"I know another way there," Kuro repeated, more loudly. "There's another entrance."

A mix of suspicion and interest pulled the attention of the other students. "What do you mean, there's another entrance?" Demanded Bella.

Kuro fidgeted nervously under the oppressive gaze of the dozen other orphans. "There's an entrance to the platform off Knockturn Alley."

Bella threw up her hands. "A fat lot of good that does us. Knockturn Alley is also in London."

"No it isn't," Kuro corrected meekly.

Bella looked at him as if he were an idiot.

"Only part of it is in London," Kuro tried to explain. "It isn't a normal street. It has entrances all over. There's one on High Street."

"Why didn't you say so sooner?" Bella shook Kuro. "There's barely an hour before the train leaves."

"We are not going to Knockturn Alley," argued Meredith.

"We bloody well are," retorted Bella, picking up both hers and Azalea's trunk. "Kuro, how do we get there?"

"I..." Kuro trailed off. "I don't know. I only know the way from High Street."

"There's a bus leaving in five minutes," said Jonathan conspiratorially, pointing at the schedule board.

Meredith shot him a very dirty look before conceding defeat. "They're going to take away my prefect badge for this," she moaned. "Okay, let's not miss that bus." She grabbed her own trunk and Kuro's and tromped off toward the busses.

There was likely never a more tense bus ride. Every time a passenger called for a stop Kuro could hear jaws clenching in worry. Azalea looked to be trying to push the bus to move faster through sheer force of will.

Twenty minutes later, they scrambled from the bus onto High Street. "What now?" asked Bella.

"There's a gap between buildings over there. We just need to slide through and we'll pop out in Knockturn." Kuro pointed over to a pair of red brick buildings a few yards away.

The group trundled through the busy commercial street to the magical gap, earning looks of confusion and annoyance from the many shoppers. Kuro was about to lead the way through when Meredith hauled him back "It's going to look a bit funny if fourteen kids disappear in the middle of a busy street," she hissed in frustration.

"Not to mention most of us won't fit through that gap," added Jonathan.

Kuro felt foolish. He hadn't been thinking. Whenever he had come through before, he had been alone and carrying no more than a couple of pastries. He thought about shoving the trunks in his bag, but it wouldn't fit all of them, and it wouldn't help Meredith squeeze through the hole. He looked around for suggestions from the others, but they just looked back at him in disappointment.

"Azalea is the only one that matters," said Bella emphatically. "She'll fit, we can bring the luggage on the train later."

"I'm not going without you," argued Azalea.

"You bloody well are," replied Bella earnestly. "Your first ride on the Express, the sorting, your first night at Hogwarts. They matter, 'Zal. I am not going to let you miss them."

There was a general mumer of agreement from the other students.

"Kuro!" the soft tone Bella had used with her sister fell away as she rounded on Kuro. "Promise me you'll get my sister to the train on time." It was at the same time a desperate plea and a forceful command.

Kuro did not like being in such a position of responsibility. He was afraid to refuse, but more afraid to agree and fail. He knew in his heart what Bella said was true. If he hadn't been on the train, hadn't joined the other Hufflepuffs at the table on that first night, he might have spent his first year alone and friendless. "I promise," he heard himself say before he had finished making a decision.

"You've less than ten minutes," said Jonathan, checking his pocket watch.

Kuro felt a surge of panic that made it hard to breathe. "This way," his voice cracked with urgency. "Left hand first."

As the larger children blocked them from view, Kuro led Azalea and the other smaller children through the space in the wall. The warm bustling High Street of Guilford vanished instantly and the six of them tumbled out clumsily into the unwelcoming stagnant quiet of Knockturn alley.

Kuro tugged the others to their feet and pointed up the alley. "We'd better run," he said hurriedly. "It's a ways up till the exit."

He started to dash at full speed up the alley toward the old turnstile beside Borgin and Burkes. He had only made it thirty meters before he realized he was alone. The other children were moving slowly, barely jogging behind him, looking frightened and cautious.

"Come on," he pleaded. "It's just a street."

They gained a bit of speed, but they were unused to running, as most witches and wizards were. They ran out of breath quickly and lagged behind. Kuro felt that he had never moved so slowly in all his life as he did keeping pace with the other five orphans.

He could see Borgin and Burkes in the distance. It crept at a tortoise's speed toward them. Kuro's patience ran thin and he broke away from the others like a shot. "I'm just going to check that it's working," he said as he peeled away from the wheezing and panting group.

He reached the spot in moments. He turned down the small, dark passage beside the shop where he knew the old turnstile to be. They just had to back through it and they'd be on Platform Nine and three quarters.

It wasn't there.

He looked up and down and ran to the other side of the store, imagining that he had forgotten which side it was on.

It was definitely gone.

He walked backwards down the passage, hoping the magic would still work, but he just backed into the dead-end wall rather painfully.

He emerged from the passage panicked and confused as the collection of exhausted children staggered up to meet him. "What's wrong?" huffed Stephen Burbage, noting Kuro expression.

"It's gone," said Kuro "The passage is gone."

"What do you mean it's gone?" demanded Azalea between heavy wheezes. "Where did it go?"

"I don't..." Kuro was about to explain that he didn't know, but interrupted himself. He thought there might be someone who did nearby. "I'll ask," he said.

He straightened his clothes and hat and steeled himself for an uncomfortable encounter. He pushed open the door to Borgin and Burke's and stepped inside.

Borgin and Burke's was a landmark in Knockturn Alley. It was relatively new at less than a century old, but it had a reputation that spanned the wizarding world. It was advertized as an antique shop. The owners had wanted to have a proper shop to trade in fine, old, enchanted goods, but they couldn't afford a space on Diagon Alley so they set up just around the corner in Knockturn.

That couple of yards meant that few honest wizards would consider visiting it. They began to trade in less and less reputable items to stay in business. After a few years, they had become known as the place to hock and buy cursed objects and items of questionable provenance.

Kuro walked into the dark and musty shop as bravely as he could. The cheerful bell that rang as he opened and closed the door seemed wrong and out of place in this grim collection of curios.

Shrunken heads hung in a line in the window, their eyes and mouths stitched shut. A flying carpet, rolled up and chained to a wall, fought to escape its bindings. There was a horrible animated sculpture of a snake growing longer at the same rate it choked down its own tail, stuck forever in a terrible loop.

The door clattered open again and the other five children followed Kuro into the store. They stuck close together and several had wands out. "Don't touch anything," Kuro warned, but it was unnecessary. The atmosphere of this place did not encourage curiosity.

A sound at the back of the store made them all jump. "I'm coming I'm coming, I'll just be a moment" said a rasping but polite voice from the back of the shop.

A badly aging wizard shuffled through the shop, carefully avoiding contact with any of its contents. He was hunched and he held his hands up close to his chest like a praying mantis. His hair was thinning unevenly and was combed over in a vain attempt to cover up his blotchy scalp. "I'm very sorry to keep you waiting," he said in a sniveling wheese.

His ingratiating manner fell away the moment he saw the children. "Children are not allowed in here unsupervised. Get out!" he snapped.

Some of the other children started backing out of the door, but Kuro held fast. He removed his hat and bowed slightly, hoping to look courteous. "Mr. Borgin, sir, I'm very sorry to bother you."

"What are you doing here?" he interrupted harshly. "Shouldn't you be on a train. I've been putting up with students for weeks. I thought I was free of you." He turned and started back to his store room. "Off with you," he snarled.

Kuro steeled himself for another volley. "Yes sir," Kuro began meekly. "We're meant to be on the train, but we missed a connection. We were going to take the turnstile next to your shop."

Mr. Borgin stopped at the mention of the turnstile.

"It's missing, sir," Kuro continued. "Do you know where it went? Is there another way? We're very late."

Mr. Borgin turned slowly, a dark and suspicious look on his face. "How does a little wizardling like you know about that turnstile."

"I..." Kuro's resolve wavered under Borgin's scrutinizing gaze. "I used to live here. Everyone here knows about it."

"Everyone does not know about it." Mr. Borgin approached Kuro, slithering around shelves and cases like a serpent. His small dark eyes darted over Kuro, analysing his features and his fingers twitched as though they were eager to dismantle him. "You're Phineas Hearn's creature, the halfbreed"

Kuro felt sick and angry at the statement. He was not Phineas's possession, nor was he a creature. He didn't feel like he could argue, though. He needed answers from Borgin. He tried to keep his temper level and his voice civil. "Please sir, we're almost out of time. Is there a way to Platform Nine and Three-Quarters?" he pleaded.

Borgin looked suddenly very pleased, as though he had just made a great deal of money. "Oh yes, there is a way. The turnstile is in my back room, still very much functional. Some men from the ministry were looking at it a few weeks back, looking to remove it. It's a fine antique, shouldn't be taken away from here." His voice became oily with insidious cunning. "You could use it..." Borgin let the words hang long enough for hope to build in the children before finishing. "...for a price."

Kuro's heart sank. He looked to the others but they shook their heads. None of them had any money with them. Any they did have would be back with their trunks. Kuro did, though. He had the galleon that Mr. Besom had given him. His first gift, a precious possession. He fidgeted with it in his pocket hesitantly. He had promised to get Azalea to the train. The air around him felt suddenly heavy and thick as the battle between his desire to keep his coin and the guilt at failing to keep his word. "How much," he asked.

"Not much..." Mr. Borgin waved his hand as though the thought was a moth to be shooed away. "Not much at all, just a few drops of your blood."

"What?" interrupted Azalea fiercely. "Why do you want that?"

"It is unique," explained Borgin, referring to Kuro. "Unique things can be valuable to the right clientele, and there has been quite the demand for half-breed blood of late." Borgin's gaze moved to Azalea assessing her as he had Kuro, as though summing her parts to calculate her value.

He turned suddenly to Kuro, his face uncomfortably close. "Do we have a deal?" Borgin asked showing his blackened teeth in a wry smile.

Kuro was less worried about losing blood than his coin. Phineas had taken gallons of his blood over Kuro's life for tests and experiments, and Bella had spilled more than a few drops. The vile satisfaction painted across Borgin's face, though, gave him pause.

He stared for a cold moment into the heartless, calculating gaze of Mr. Borgin before a chime forced Kuro's decision. A clock was striking eleven. The train would be pulling away from the station at any moment. "Deal," he said quickly, exposing his forearm to Borgin. "But do it fast."

"Of course," he said as he drew a wand. He laid the tip to Kuro's wrist and muttered something.

Kuro felt a prick like a bee sting. Borgin pulled away his wand slowly and a glimmering ribbon of crimson blood followed it. Kuro could see Azalea watching with dark fascination as Borgin coiled the blood into a ball and fed it into a small crystal phial. He corked it briskly, dropped it into a pocket and said, "this way please, mind the displays."

Kuro held his wrist to staunch the bleeding as they were led through the shop into the back room. It was filled to bursting with old, decrepit and terrible looking things. There was a chesterfield, stained with blood and tied to the floor. A large squid made of black smoke beat against the sides of the huge bell jar containing it, testing it for means of escape. The head, leg, and arm of a great golden statue, lay in a pile gathering dust. A thousand more objects big and small filled shelves from floor to ceiling.

They were led quickly to a dark corner where Mr. Borgin pulled a filthy sheet from atop a brass and wood turnstile. "Back through it. Quick as you like."

A little nervously, Azalea backed against the bar and pushed through. The moment she had passed the gate, she vanished. The other children followed quickly, not stopping to consider whether they had been misled.

Kuro was the last to go. As he began to back through, Mr. Borgin put a hand on his shoulder. "You're a valuable commodity, child. There are those that would pay quite handsomely for you."

Borgin's oily voice made it unclear if it was an offer, a warning, or a threat, but Kuro wasn't going to waste time finding out. He tore free of the grip and slid backwards through the turnstile. The dark and unpleasant shop vanished and was replaced instantly with the smoke, bright lights and red brick of Platform Nine and Three-Quarters.

He tripped over the pile of other orphans who had fallen in a heap as they ran backwards into each other. He found his feet just in time to see the Hogwarts Express pulling out of the station.


	6. Chapter 6 - The Hogwarts Express

A collective groan of defeat poured from the orphans as the cars of the train rolled out of the station. Physically and emotionally exhausted, they mostly gave up on moving and just lay in a disappointed heap where they had fallen after coming through the gate.

Kuro was not ready to concede so easily. He had myriad reasons to press on. He had given his word, made a promise. That mattered. Also, Bella would make his life miserable if he failed to get her sister on that train and he could do without another year of that torment. He also wanted Azalea to ride the train for selfish reasons. He hoped that with some friends and other distractions, she'd stop stalking him and threatening him with harm and violence. Completely aside from Azalea, his friends were on that train. He hadn't seen them in two months and now they were only a few yards away. He couldn't let them escape.

He pressed his feeling of urgency down into his feet and let the magic in him build until it burst out, shooting him forward. He sprinted through the crowd of parents who were still waving to their children on the train and jumped down onto the tracks. He heard startled cries from the platform as he hit the gravel bed between the rails.

His feet shot up a shower of stones behind him as he chased the train. It was still moving slowly, its last car not even free of the station. He ran as fast as he could after it. He was gaining on it, but it was gaining speed. He tripped and faltered as he ran on the uneven ground, every piece of loose gravel costing him precious inches. Just finger lengths away, it started to outpace him. His legs were burning from the chase and his lungs complained of being filled with the smoke from the train. He stretched out an arm and with a last lurching lunge he grabbed hold of the heavy iron coupling sticking out behind the last car.

His feet and knees bounced and dragged over gravel and rail ties as he held tight to the accelerating train. He was already so tired from the chase that his body felt like lead as he struggled to haul himself up onto the coupling. The gentle rocking of the train threatened to throw him off as he got his feet under him and stood up. He grabbed the handle of the sliding back door and pulled. It was locked.

He kicked and yanked at the lever until something cracked and gave way. The door slid suddenly open, knocking him off balance. He swung out with the momentum of the door, dangling from the handle. On the return swing, he launched himself into into the cabin.

He hit the floor hard and rolled. Inside, the train seemed like a different world. It was noisy with laughter and children's voices. The bruises and rug-burn he had just earned had come from polished mahogany panelling with gold inlay and a lush burgundy carpet. It was almost like he had passed through another magical passage in Knockturn Alley.

He didn't have time to appreciate it yet, though. He looked around frantically for something he barely remembered noticing on his first trip on the train. His eyes found it, a red handle hanging on a brass chain from the ceiling, the words "EMERGENCY STOP" carved into its side.

He jumped up and grabbed the handle. His paltry weight alone was not enough to move it so he kicked and bounced as he hung from the chain, trying to budge it. Finally, he swung his feet up over his head and planted them on the ceiling of the train car. A group older of boys in the compartment to his side stood to watch in confusion as he pulled with all his might to move the chain that probably hadn't been tested in a century.

With a rusty, scraping thunk, the chain pulled free. Kuro fell gracelessly back to the floor as the train's brakes slammed on. Wheels screamed as they slid against the rails. Luggage shifted and fell and the boisterous laughter quickly changed to angry curses and startled profanity.

Kuro lay in a tattered heap, giggling to himself. He was utterly spent. His body parts were taking turns filing complaints about their treatment, from his bruised and battered shins, to his overworked lungs, to his strained and exhausted muscles. Yet the exhilaration of it all was still washing over him in waves, making it all seem comical and dreamlike.

His reverie was interrupted the by compartment beside him emptying. Three older boys, Gryffindors by the looks of them, hauled him to his feet. "What'd you do that for you little freak?" asked the best dressed of them as he balled his fists.

Before the boys had a chance to beat a sensible answer out of Kuro, an adult's voice joined in. "Yeah, why'd you do that?" asked a bored sounding Cockney man. "That's only meant for emergencies."

The boys released Kuro and backed into their cabin. Kuro was left facing a tall thin man with an untidy uniform and a permanently bemused expression. It was Mr. Shunpike, the train's conductor.

"We missed the train," Kuro tried explaining.

"You're on the train," Mr. Shunpike replied slowly, as though explaining something very obvious to someone very dim.

"But I wasn't..." Kuro started.

"That's how trains work," the conductor interrupted. "You weren't. Then you were. Now you are."

"There are others." said Kuro.

"No there aren't," stated Mr. Shunpike with resounding dismissal. "You're by yourself. See." He emphasized the point by waving his hands through the air around Kuro to demonstrate its emptiness.

"They're back on the platform. We have to go back for them." implored Kuro gesturing vigorously back to the station.

The conductor looked out past Kuro and seemed to consider for a long moment while chewing on his gum like a cow chewing cud. "No can do," he concluded.

"Why not?" Kuro begged.

"There's people on the tracks. They're in the way."

Kuro spun to see a group of people headed up the rails. Some of the parents on the platform had helped the other children down and were leading them to the train.

The conductor let down the steps for them and bowed them in cordially. As they entered they all gave Kuro some words of encouragement.

"Thanks," said Stephanie, passing him by quickly.

"That was bloody brilliant," said Titus, clapping Kuro on the back.

"Meredith is gonna lose it when she finds out," warned Hugo, grinning.

"Not bad," admitted Jordan before quickly moving on to find his friends.

"You're an idiot," grumbled Azalea, who was last to board. She glowered at him disapprovingly before moving off to find a dark corner to brood in. Kuro detected a slight hint of gratitude in her tone but he couldn't imagine her thanking him. That might put her in his debt and that was unthinkable.

The train started to move again and Kuro started through the cars to find his friends. He hunched down and averted his face as compartment after compartment full of children complained loudly about the abrupt stop as they stowed their luggage back on the racks.

It was an overwhelming relief to see Mary through a compartment window with an empty seat beside her. He opened the door tentatively and she waved him in with a smile.

"We thought you'd missed the train," she said as she shuffled over to make space for him.

"I did," replied Kuro as he climbed onto the bench. "It um... stopped for us to get on."

"Is that what happened?" said someone on the opposite bench.

Kuro's heart leaped with joy at the sound of Charlie's voice. He turned as he settled in his seat to see his first and best friend beaming at him. He might not have recognized her if not for the unrestrained grin and familiar voice. She had cut her straw-blonde hair short and her face was blotchy with spots. She looked to have gotten taller as well. She wore jeans and a jumper and looked a bit like Edward did when they had first met.

Sitting beside Charlie was a nearly perfect duplicate of her. Kuro's jaw went a bit slack as he pondered the two girls staring back at him. "Edward!" Kuro shouted as the puzzle sorted itself out in his head.

Edward was a metamorphmagi and had a bad habit of changing his shape to look like whomever he was talking to. He looked to have gotten better at it since they parted two months ago, because he could barely tell the two apart. "Hi Kuro," he said in his slightly stilted manner. "I'm happy you made it."

"Me too," Kuro sighed, as he relaxed into the plush velvet seat and the English countryside began to slide past at increasing speed.

"Did you get my letter?" asked Edward eagerly. "It's the first letter I've ever sent by muggle post. I had to get my uncle to show me how."

Kuro thought he knew to which uncle he was referring. Edward was inconveniently the godson of Harry Potter.

"I did," replied Kuro uncertainly. "But, well, the letter was blank."

Edward's face fell. His replication of Charlie melted away and he looked like himself again, with his green eyes, broad nose and shaggy hair. He slapped his hand to his forehead. "I must have used the wrong inkwell," he groaned. "I got some disappearing ink for my birthday."

The cabin broke out in uproarious laughter. It felt good. Kuro wasn't sure he'd really laughed since he left school. He was wiping tears from his eyes and fighting hiccups when Charlie chose to add her own harrowing tales of letter sending.

She pulled a pile of tattered papers and crumpled envelopes from her bag. "So..." she began, holding up a shredded piece of paper. "Sending mail is a lot harder than I thought it would be. We don't have a post box so I had to remember to bring your letter with me when we went into town but I forgot the first two times and then a couple of imps got at it and tore it all up." She then presented an envelope that looked like it had spent time in a lake. "I wrote a second one but it rained really hard and it got all soaked so I couldn't send it." She moved on to her final slightly crumpled envelope. "So I wrote a third one which I lost and then found and then lost again, but then I found it again but by then what I had said didn't matter anymore because the Kelpie had been taken back to its own loch. So I wrote another letter which should arrive at St. Brutus' any day now."

She spilled her whole story out in a single breath and concluded with a triumphant crescendo and a formal presentation of the battered remains of her first three letters to Kuro.

"I really don't know why muggles can't use owls like we do. It's so much simpler," she sighed in exasperation as she flopped inelegantly back onto her seat.

"I don't know why wizards can't send emails," said Mary wryly. "They're faster than owls and don't eat mice."

Kuro jumped as the compartment door slid open without warning, interrupting their conversation. Evelyn Lemieux stood outside looking in with a placidly superior smile. Her flawless golden locks tumbled around her pale, beautiful face. Her neatly tailored muggle clothes accentuated and exaggerated the areas in which she'd grown since the previous year. She even managed to catch a sunbeam, making her radiate an angelic glow. She was so perfect it made Kuro nauseous. He wanted to kick the door back closed in hopes of catching her upturned nose with it.

He considered it briefly, but saw that she had backup. Two burly looking boys, including Jordan Selwyn from the Orphanage, were with her along with a couple other Ravenclaw girls.

"I was just coming around to make sure no one was badly hurt in that stop," she lied. "Someone very stupid indeed pulled the emergency brake." She shot Kuro a look of pompous disgust. Kuro, in turn, scowled at Jordan for telling on him.

Jordan grimaced and shrugged in apology, but did nothing to stop Evelyn's oncoming taunts.

"Oh dear," she said in mock surprise as she surveyed the compartment, as if she were just noticing it occupants for the first time. "I thought there were students in here, but it seems there's been a breakout at the pound."

She laughed at her own joke and looked to her entourage, encouraging them to join her. "Send an owl quick," she said, laying a hand on Jordan's shoulder. "Let them know there's a stray, a mutt and a rabid dingo in here." She gestured to Kuro, Charlie, and Edward, in turn.

"Piss off," spat Mary, flexing her fists and standing to face Evelyn. She lowered her head to glare threateningly at Evelyn over her thick-rimmed glasses. Unlike the others, Mary had grown up in muggle schools and had brothers and sisters. She had dealt with proper bullies before and had little patience for the clumsy attempts that pampered wizarding children made at it.

"Oh, and there's another mongrel," chided Evelyn. "Though a less cultured person might use another word for dogs like her."

Mary stomped up to the door and Evelyn retreated behind her bodyguards, her poise and superior bearing faltering momentarily. Mary sneered at her victoriously and slid the compartment door shut with a bang.

"Thanks," said Kuro, wishing he had the gusto to match Mary. "That's one part of Hogwarts I didn't miss."

"If we're lucky, she won't make it to school." Mary smirked as she shoved her glasses up her nose.

"What do you mean?" asked Kuro, confused.

"With her nose that high in the air she can't possibly see where she's going. Maybe she'll fall off the back of the train."

Kuro laughed out loud and looked to his friends, but Edward and Charlie still looked shaken from the encounter. Edward was downcast, his hair turning a muddy green and falling into his face, but Charlie looked downright wounded.

"Are you okay?" Kuro asked, confused.

"Yeah," said Edward glumly as he tried to get his features back to some semblance of normal. "It's nothing new. People aren't very nice to werewolves."

"But you're only half-werewolf," argued Kuro.

"What does that matter?" replied Edward angrily as though Kuro had insulted him.

Charlie still said nothing, which was unusual for her. Charlie's endless chatter was normally the soundtrack to their lives together. He didn't know what to do though, or why she was so upset. Kuro tried to think of something to say to break the mood. "What... um... what were you guys talking about before I ... Mary," he interrupted himself, "did you always wear glasses?"

Kuro succeeded in pulling Charlie from her gloom as she let out a restrained snorting laugh. He lost Mary, though. She threw up her arms in frustration and scowled over her frames at him, reminding Kuro a bit of Professor McGonagall.

"She doesn't like them." said Edward. "She thinks they make her look ordinary."

"I think they make you look clever," said Charlie in a very complementary tone.

"I don't need to look clever," growled Mary.

"I think they make you look like the Headmistress," Kuro admitted.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Mary demanded, rising up out of her seat.

"I mean that you look terrifying." said Kuro, shrinking under her furious gaze.

Mary's expression cracked and a slight smile fought its way onto her lips. She didn't say it out loud, but Kuro got the impression that she had liked his answer.

The tension finally broken, Charlie began to regale them with tales of her summer. She told them about the chimera cubs that they were raising on her farm and all the trouble they caused when one of their heads started breathing fire. She talked about the old ent that had taken up residence in their yard and how angry it had been when her father had mistaken it for a tree and tried to nail a birdhouse to it.

Edward occasionally broke in to tell stories about his interesting collection of uncles who ran joke shops, or scavenged for ancient treasures, or studied dragons. And Mary lamented her boring and mundane life with her muggle family.

Kuro kept quiet and listened to it all. He was back. It was as if the four of them had never been apart. As the sun set and the silhouette of Hogwarts appeared in the distance, he felt a warm joy creep over him.

He was home.


	7. Chapter 7 - The Sorting

The Hogwarts Express rolled into the little wizarding village of Hogsmeade as the sun sank below the horizon. From the station, Hogwarts looked like a frightening citadel perched high on a distant cliff above an inky black lake. Its many spires rose like jagged spines over its tall, fortified walls.

Hungry and stiff from travel, Kuro bounded off the train. He was eager to get to the great hall for the huge start-of-term feast, but his friends had to haul their luggage out with them and were taking too long for Kuro's liking.

He heard the familiar voice of Hagrid, the school groundskeeper, booming over the rising din of students piling from the train. "First years, this way. First years with me." He was twice the height of an ordinary man and thrice the width. His massive bushy black beard and thick, tangled hair obscured most of his face leaving only his eyes and the tip of his nose exposed. Those eyes were kind and usually smiling brightly, but in the fading light, they were little more than dark shadows, adding to an already imposing figure.

First years shuffled towards him cautiously, none wanting to be the first within his reach. Older students encouraged them onward. Kuro chuckled as he remembered his first trip to the castle. A year older and wiser, he wondered if they made the whole experience this frightening for the new students on purpose.

He didn't have long to reflect, though. He was grabbed rather abruptly and shoved and jostled by several dozen upper-year students in turn towards Hagrid. Hagrid clapped Kuro on the back, nearly knocking him over. "Are you the last? It looks like," he said in a friendly tone to Kuro, and then straightened up so he could shout, "Alright, follow me down to the docks!"

Kuro stumbled forward in confusion, caught up in the stream of first-years and shepherded by the lumbering bulk of the groundskeeper. He looked around him at the flock of younger students. His heart sank as he realized what was happening. "Hagrid, stop it's me, Kuro!" he protested, as he fought to extricate himself from the stream of children.

"What?" Hagrid stopped urging the crowd forward and the procession came to an uncertain stop. "Kuro, what are you doing here? You should be up taking a carriage"

Surrounded by the first years, the reason for the confusion became apparent to everyone. He was the smallest there and had been mistaken as one of them. He had been the shortest child at school the previous year and it hadn't done him any favors. Being the smallest student at Hogwarts the second year running was not a title he was eager to hold. He slouched and shifted uncomfortably as dozens of curious eyes scrutinized his oddness.

"Oh... I, er, didn't recognize you in the dark." said Hagrid apologetically. "You should get back up before the carriages leave without you."

Kuro pushed his way out of the crowd. His last barrier to exit was a sallow-skinned, dark-haired girl wearing an evil grin. She was enjoying his torment. Azalea said nothing, but bowed Kuro out in mock propriety. He did his best to ignore her and stomped back up the path towards the platform.

Kuro was relieved to find that Charlie and the others were looking for him. Upon catching sight of him, Charlie ran over and began dragging him onward. "Hurry up, I'm starving. What were you doing down there?"

"I got mistaken for a first-year," said Kuro, sulkily.

Charlie snorted, attempting to stifle a laugh. "You don't look like a first year at all," consoled Charlie, trying to sound sympathetic. "They all look like chickens who've been hit with a confundus charm. You look more like a grumpy fox."

Kuro tried to take this as a compliment but he just ended up feeling self-conscious about the size of his ears.

They reached the line of carriages, most of which were already full and starting to pull away. They looked like old-fashioned horse-drawn taxis, but they lacked a driver and the horses pulling them were terrifying. They were skeletal, their hairless black skin pulled tight over their bones. Their heads were reptilian, and their eyes were a slightly luminous milky white. They also had huge bat-like wings that looked powerful enough to haul the whole carriage into the air.

Kuro found the creatures deeply unsettling. Most of the other students seemed completely comfortable with them, though. They ignored the terrifying beasts and climbed happily into their carriages without hesitation. Kuro did his best to do the same. He put on a brave face and followed his friends to an empty carriage. He felt his feigned courage was transparent, as he kept Charlie between himself and the monstrous draft beast.

He scurried into the carriage as the others loaded their luggage and faced devotedly away from the creature. He believed that he had been subtle about it, but as soon as Mary had settled in the seat beside him she asked, "Are you okay? You're acting kind of weird."

Kuro waved away the comment in his best attempt at a nonchalant gesture. "It's nothing. I just find the horse a little creepy."

The other three just stared at him blankly as the black, skeletal dragon-horse began to pull them up towards the castle. "What horse?" Mary said uncertainly.

Kuro pointed uncertainly to the large black monstrosity pulling their carriage up the bumpy dirt road. "That one. The one pulling the carriage."

The other three continued to stare as though he'd gone mad. They were so incredulous that Kuro checked again to make sure it was still there. It was, clear as day, black as night. It's bony hips swaying as it walked, it's whip-like tail twitching back and forth.

"There's nothing there," said Mary, now sounding uncertain herself.

Edward nodded reassuringly. "The carts drive themselves," he said with confidence.

Charlie was a much more curious soul. She clambered over and looked out the window. She squinted and blinked a lot and tried to get a different angle on it. "What does it look like Kuro?" she asked suddenly, whipping around to interrogate him.

"Um..." he stammered. "It's big and black. And really skinny and it has wings..." He trailed off as the others looked out but were clearly unable to see what Kuro was looking at. His chest was feeling tight as his fear of them thinking him mad grew. Darker thoughts, that he might actually be mad crept into his mind and taunted him in Azalea's voice.

Charlie came to his rescue. "Thestrals!" she announced proudly. "They're thestrals. They're invisible, sort of." She clambered to the back window and pointed excitedly at the ground. "Look, you can see their clawprints in the dirt."

"Why can't we see them?" demanded Mary as she cleaned her glasses before taking a better look at the thing that wasn't there.

"Most people can't," started Charlie excitedly, but her tone shifted to one of sadness as she listened to herself explain. "You can only see them if you've seen someone die..." She trailed off and her hand moved to the locket she wore, the locket containing a picture of her dead mother.

Kuro had been there when she was murdered. It was a memory that haunted him, and he expected that the three pairs of eyes looking at him now, full of pity, fear, and sadness, would be added to those nightmares.

He was grateful to see the winged boar statues that flanked the school gates pass by the window. The awkwardness of the carriage ride would be swept away by the excitement of the sorting and the mountains of food at the feast.

The great hall was exactly as he remembered it from the year before. The high vaulted ceiling was enchanted to show the starry night sky above. Hundreds of candles lit the hall, floating as if on a lake whose surface was a few meters above their heads.

Tables in four long rows were set with golden dishes, ready for the feast. Above them hung the house colour and crests. They hurried to take their favourite seats under the black and gold banners of Hufflepuff House.

The clamour in the hall grew to deafening levels as the whole of the school piled into their tables and tried to talk over each other. The teachers filed in to the head table, leaving three seats notably vacant.

An extra large space with an oversized and reinforced seat for Hagrid was empty, as he was still bringing the first-years across the lake in boats. A much smaller space with an unusually tall chair was also empty for Professor Flitwick. He was a tiny man, not much taller than Kuro, and was likely down welcoming the new students. The third chair had been filled the year before by Ms. Crawley, the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. It currently sat empty, though a place-setting had been laid out. Kuro wondered who the new professor would be. He hoped that she would be as good as Ms. Crawley had been.

The appearance of Hagrid at a side entrance enhanced the excitement in the room. The headmistress, Professor McGonagall, stood and approached a lectern. She was a stern and commanding woman of terrifying power. She needed only to raise her eyebrows expectantly for silence to fall over the hall.

"Welcome back, everyone," she said in her crisp, clear, and businesslike tone. "The first years will be joining us momentarily. Please welcome them to your houses warmly as they are sorted, but do stay quiet while the sorting hat is on a head. Prefects, I will rely on you as always to help your new charges find their way tonight."

Kuro settled in for the lengthy ceremony. He was starving, but the excitement of the room was infectious. He watched with curiosity and cheered along with the rest of the school as the new students filtered in, wondering who would be the new Hufflepuffs.

He had trouble not laughing as the new students filed into the hall to stand at the front of the room. Tall and short, thin and wide, black, white and brown, they were a motley collection of mismatched children who managed, each of them, to look equally out of place. They gazed around the hall in wonder, heads bobbing, turning this way and that, like a flock of curious pigeons. They were so distracted by the magnitude and majesty of the great hall that they bumped into and tripped over each other. One boy forgot to keep walking and a girl in a wheelchair knocked into him causing the whole line to stumble like a row of dominoes. Finally assembled and upright, they stood huddled together, looking frightened and lost. Kuro wondered if he and his friends had seemed so pathetic when they had been in their place the year before.

Professor Flitwick appeared and presented the Sorting Hat. He set it on a stool without explanation, letting the first-years wallow in trepidation a little while longer. The room fell silent as the battered and patched hat stirred and began to sing.

"There is one who's studied here  
since before this school was new.  
Who's known every prof that's come and gone  
and every student, too.

They know all the secrets of the school,  
every nook and crack.  
Even though they spend their days  
hanging on a wooden rack.

It's me, you see, the Sorting Hat  
bound to put students into houses.  
Filing children one-by-one  
by the values each espouses

My trusted job and only task  
is to tell you where you sleep,  
But I cannot dream to dictate  
the company you keep.

A Gryffindor, bold and brave,  
can be a true and valued friend.

They'll have your back, fight by your side  
and defend you to the end.

When breaking bread with Slytherin  
you'll meet mates of great ambition.  
They'll pull you up and push you on  
to bring your goals to fruition.

In Ravenclaw, you will find  
companions of keen intellect.  
With cunning wit, thoughtful thoughts  
and advice you can respect.

In times of need and times of woe  
to Hufflepuffs none compare.  
When all the rest have left your side,  
it's they who'll still be there.

So sit right down, put me on,  
let me see inside your head.  
I'll take a look and let you know  
just where you'll make your bed."

It was a very different song than the year before. Kuro liked the change and others around him murmured approval and agreed that it confirmed Hufflepuff to be the best house. This affirming feeling was a little tainted though, as he overheard some Slytherins behind him saying much the same about their own house and saw some Ravenclaws nodding along with each other.

At last the sorting began. Professor Flitwick unrolled a parchment scroll and explained to the new students what to do when they were called. Kuro and Mary's eyes met. They had been first and last in line last year, both unenviable positions. They looked up with sympathy for the poor student who would be first into the chair.

"Azalea Avery!" Flitwick's magically amplified voice rang out across the hall.

Kuro's sympathy evaporated. Mary had been a nervous muggleborn kid with no understanding of what was happening. Azalea had Slytherin stamped on her forehead at birth. Even so, she seemed a little shaky as she climbed onto the stool and waited for the hat to make its judgement.

It took longer to make a decision than Kuro expected. He wondered if it was just for dramatic effect, but after a quiet and considered pause it did shout "Slytherin." Azalea took a visible gasp of relief before marching proudly to the loudly cheering table beneath the green and silver banners.

Names were called and the line slowly thinned. "Violet Bedi, Gryffindor. Hypatia Brackenwood, Ravenclaw. Taylor Finch, Hufflepuff." Cheers rang out each time the hat shouted a house and the news students were welcomed by their new house. Hufflepuff earned a dozen new students.

The excitement did start to dwindle after a while, but at long last there was only one remaining. Kuro remembered his time at the end of the line with distressing clarity. He could still feel the weight of everyone's stares pressing in on him. Unlike Kuro, the last girl standing this year seemed to revel in the attention.

She stood proudly, with poise and grace. She was pale with long strawberry-blonde hair, striking blue eyes and a spatter of freckles across her cheeks that were so perfectly distributed it looked like someone painted them on. She tossed her hair back over her shoulder and beamed at the room, which let out a collective sigh of adoration.

"Just look at her," muttered Charlie to nobody in particular. "I hope she's in our house."

Edward produced a noise like he was choking on a live frog. "I really hope not." he said with dread in his voice. "She's dreadful."

"Do you know her?" asked Shaun Cassidy, one of the other boys in Kuro's year. "Can you introduce us?"

"She's my uncle Bill's daughter," Edward admitted. "And no, I will not introduce you."

Charlie joined in the whispered conversation as well, though most of the room could hear Charlie's whispers. "She's your cousin? Really? You don't look very much alike."

"She is not my cousin," stated Edward emphatically. "We're not related at all, thank goodness. She's..."

"Victoire Weasley!" shouted Professor Flitwick from the stage, cutting Edward off. She mounted the stool and waited expectantly for the hat to be lowered. It had barely passed her hairline when it shouted "Gryffindor!"

The Gryffindors exploded with cheers and began to fight to be the first to greet her. The rest of the tables mumbled with disappointment. Edward rolled his eyes. "It's always like that," he groaned.

McGonagall took the podium and hushed the room. "A few announcements before the feast," she began. "First, our caretaker Mr. Filch would like me to remind all students of the list of prohibited items." She held up a roll of parchment which unfurled to the floor and rolled several feet further along the ground. "It is available for review outside his office in the second dungeon. He has also asked me to inform you that the second dungeon is off-limits to students due to ongoing reconstruction." She waved her free hand and the scroll rolled itself back up.

"Professor Hagrid would like me to remind all students that the Centaur forest is outside school grounds and any trespassing is likely to be met with a swift death, unless you are particularly unlucky. He also asks that you refrain from feeding the giant squid as he is on a new exercise regimen and could do without the extra cakes."

"Also, the Cedric Diggory Memorial Yule Ball will be held on the evening of December twenty-second. The train home will leave the following morning. There are no more details at this time and I would thank you to not ask me anything more on the subject." The tone of her voice and the thinness of her lips told Kuro that this was not the first time she had already explained this several times that night.

Kuro was uncertain what the Yule Ball was. He pondered as they sang the school song. As the song finished and the feast appeared with a wave of McGonagall's hand, Kuro asked about it.

"It's the Yule Ball," explained Edward unhelpfully between bites of turkey. "You know, the Yule Ball."

Kuro just shook his head. He looked to Charlie for help. "It's a dance. A fancy dance. I think it's in memory of a student that died that really liked dancing or something. I think it will be fun, but I don't like my dress robes too much. They're too pink and I think I'll be cold with no sleeves. Did you bring dress robes? You did bring dress robes didn't you? They were on the list."

Kuro was impressed that Charlie managed to say all of that while continuing to chew and swallow an entire Yorkshire pudding she had stuffed in her mouth. "I kind of wondered why we needed those," admitted Kuro. "I don't really know anything about dances, though. Do I have to go, do you think?"

"Of course you have to go," said Shaun Cassidy firmly, imposing himself on their conversation. "And you need to bring a date."

"A date?" queried Kuro in a voice not unlike a frightened mouse. He looked around at his friends all of whom seemed equally unsettled by the idea.

Kuro's food lost its flavor. He just stared vacantly into the distance as he ate numbly. The notion of taking a date to a fancy ball was utterly foreign to him. Just imagining it made him feel short, clumsy, ugly, and uncultured. He didn't know how to dance. He didn't know anything about music. He didn't know anything about fancy dress. And he definitely didn't know anything about dates. Nothing in his life had prepared him for any of it.

An anxious knot was growing in his chest and he tried to talk himself down. It was just one night. It was one night, months away. It wasn't a big deal. Tomorrow classes would start and everything would be normal again.

His thoughts were interrupted by some commotion at the head table. The professors were standing and shaking hands with a short man in a heavy travelling cloak. Kuro couldn't see clearly because Professor Hagrid was blocking his view while crushing the newcomer in a joyful embrace.

Professor McGonagall was the only one at the front who did not seemed particularly pleased to see the man. She took the podium and silenced the room with a tap of her wand. She addressed the room in a curt and professional tone. "I am sorry to interrupt, but our new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher has arrived. I would like you to welcome..."

A gasp of shock swept across the hall as the man freed himself from Hagrid the threw off his cloak with a flourish. He had wild black hair, piercing green eyes, a bright, arrogant smile, and a scar like a lightening bolt down his forehead.

McGonagall allowed the room to collect itself before concluding, "Professor Harry Potter."


	8. Chapter 8 - Care of Magical Creatures

Kuro's hopes of things returning to normal were dashed before classes even started the next day. He had gone to sleep hearing Edward, Shaun, and Oliver talking energetically about Potter and the ball and had woken up to the same.

Breakfast brought no relief at all. The entire school was buzzing with speculation about the dance and what sort of teacher Potter would be.

Shaun was particularly dedicated to sorting out dates early. "Now we don't want any rows between us so we should coordinate," he explained wisely as he wiped marmalade from his chin. He turned to Kuro and demanded "Who do you like?

"I like all you guys alright." said Kuro. "And you know I get on with Charlie and Mary. Meredith, too."

"No, no. Not your mates," Shaun said. "Who do you fancy?"

Kuro just stared back at him. It wasn't anything he'd really considered before. A life enslaved to a violent and reclusive madman had not given him much background in romance. "Why? Is that important?" he asked cautiously.

"Of course it's important. You're supposed to ask a girl you fancy to the ball." Shaun threw up his hand in exasperation at his uninformed roommate, knocking his cutlery across the table.

Things were getting more complicated than Kuro could handle. The dance was months away. He couldn't imagine that it mattered who he went with. Now he had to sort out if there were any girls he fancied and somehow have them want to go to a dance with him. It seemed impossible.

"What about you?" Shaun rounded on Edward who instantly turned fuscia.

"Um...." Even Edward's hair was blushing. "No. Nobody in particular."

Shaun's eyes narrowed suspiciously but chose not to pry. "Oliver, you must have someone you fancy."

Oliver Kagen was a round-faced quiet boy who had thus far managed to dodge Shaun's interrogation, despite being his best friend. "Evelyn is very pretty," he said almost as if asking for permission to hold the opinion. "And the new girl, Victoire?"

Shaun nodded approvingly. "Two prettiest girls in school. Good on you Oliver." He turned back to Kuro and Edward. "See you gotta start early or all the good ones will be taken."

"All the good ones?" Mary's voice cut in like an ice pick. The second year girls sat beside them at the table, but had been decidedly ignoring Shaun's ravings. "What's that make the rest of us?" She looked ready to feed Shaun his shoes.

"See, you'll never get asked to the ball with an attitude like that" explained Shaun, failing to sense the danger.

"You'll be lucky to make it to your first class with an attitude like yours," Mary threatened.

Kuro had the strong urge to hide under the table. As fortune had it a cheer rang up the Hufflepuff table, successfully derailing the impending battle. Similar shouts of welcome came from the other houses. The other orphans had arrived.

Meredith shook off her greetings quickly and tromped up to Kuro. She hugged him and mussed his already untidy hair. "You made it!" she cried and hugged him again. "I was worried sick. I never should have let you go."

"It was fine, really," Kuro said unconvincingly. "No problem at all."

Hugo, the other Hufflepuff orphan that had gone with him caught Kuro's eye. He made a gesture like zipping his lips closed and winked.

It was a bit of relief and a break in the tension as the new arrivals recounted their harrowing tales of muggle transport.

Kuro was just starting to regain some optimism for the day when class schedules were handed around. Madame Hooch, the Hufflepuff head of house handed one to all of the other second years, skipping over Kuro. He sat in confusion for several minutes while his classmates lamented loudly how busy the week would be. Eventually she came back around "I'm sorry Kuro, I almost forgot. Here is your schedule." She presented him with a piece of parchment with his name scrawled on it in McGonagall's handwriting.

He opened it uncertainly and compared it with Charlie's. While her's was busy, his was an unmitigated disaster. He hadn't recognized how carefully architected the schedule had been last year. Now that he was repeating first-year transfiguration, the juggling that had been done to accommodate it had him running all over the school and spending half his classes with other houses.

His very first class was History of Magic in a tower in the east wing, then Arithmancy at the opposite side of the school, followed by Transfiguration all the way back near the History classroom. He wouldn't share a class with his friends until Care of magical creatures to which he'd have to sprint to make it on time. After that he'd have to hope that there would still be some food to scrounge.

He was disheartened by his schedule, but he told himself that being alone would help him focus in class. He would be a proper student this year if it killed him.

Starting with History of Magic proved to be a test of that resolve. Professor Binns had been teaching the course without deviation for well over a century and had been dead for most of it. He was a ghost. Unlike most of the ghosts Kuro knew, Professor Binns hadn't lived an interesting life or died a tragic or exciting death. He was just so dull that he hadn't noticed any change from being alive, so just kept on teaching.

Binns started the class as though the previous lesson had been the day before and carried on without pause or revision, or even to take a breath as he had no need to breathe. Kuro fought to assemble the fragments of memory he had of last year's lessons on the dragon hunts of the late roman period, but the dull monotone drone of Binns pushed all thought from his mind. Ten minutes into class, he felt as dead as the professor and he joined his Gryffindor and Slytherin classmates in their distant, vacant stares.

After an hour of unbroken lecturing, Kuro felt numb. He followed his classmates robotically as they shuffled in a haze to the next class. He was halfway to the greenhouses before he shook the cobwebs clear from his mind and remembered that he wasn't in their class.

He found his bearings and started running to the other end of school. He fought against tides of students moving in the opposite direction, staircases pointed the wrong way, and a hallway inconveniently flooded by Peeves, the school poltergeist.

He skidded into the Arithmancy room just as the bell was ringing and nearly caused an avalanche. The seats had been arranged in a pyramid, with desks and chairs balancing precariously on the desks below them. Kuro tripped to a halt at the base of the stack, nearly knocking out a corner desk.

As Kuro crawled between desk legs to reach the free seat, Proffessor Vector informed the class that the pyramidal geometry focused psychic energy and provided an ideal environment for learning. Kuro had a hard time believing that. It was difficult to focus on the proper construction of multidimensional polyhedrons while being kicked in the head by the student above him, or having spilled ink trickle down over his notes.

Most of the hour was dedicated to making hyperheptahedrons, which were things with seven faces each with seven sides wrapped around seven dimensions. Near the end of the lesson, a brave student who was balanced dangerously near the top of the stack of desks asked what hyperheptahedrons were used for, Professor Vector had to think for a very long time before saying "They make excellent vases for flower arrangements."

While the rest of his class went to lunch, Kuro had to dart across the school to join the first-years in transfiguration. He made the mistake of passing the dining hall en route and the intoxicating smell of fresh bread made his stomach rumble.

He tore himself free of the siren song of toast and honey and ran on. He dashed through a collection of hidden passages, climbed an ivy covered wall, slid down a long railing and arrived ahead of the rest of the class, as they didn't know any of the shortcuts.

He greeted the cat sitting rigidly on the teacher's desk and took a seat in the front row. He pulled out his book and parchment, ink and quills and organized them neatly on his desk. He would not be defeated by the subject again. He waited as the rest of the class filed in. They stank of dirt and fertilizer from their first herbology class and talked loudly as they clumsily found their seats. They seemed a lifetime younger than he was.

Azalea accidentally took a seat beside Kuro. She was angered to find him there, but she seemed to have more pressing enemies to attend to. The class was shared with the Gryffindors and the legendary rivalry between the houses was already in full swing. In particular, Azalea and Edward's relation, Victoire, had managed to develop a deeply antagonistic relationship, leaving Kuro free to be ignored.

He laughed as everyone else gasped in shock as the the cat on the desk transformed with a pop into Professor McGonagall. She had done the same thing in his first lecture the year before. She shared a knowing look with him before quieting the class.

He made a hasty exit at the end of the lecture, rushing off to join his own class for Care of Magical Creatures. He skipped under the oncoming hordes of students by passing through the dungeons. He reached the door just as the bell sounded for the start of class. He opened it quietly and snuck inside so as to not disturb the lesson, hoping that Charlie had saved him a seat.

It seemed that Charlie had somehow saved all of the seats for him. The class was completely empty. He stared dumbfounded and slack jawed at the vacant room. It took an embarrassingly long time for him to notice the large message scrawled across the blackboard. "Class is moved to the stables today. Bring Gloves."

Kuro considered as he sprinted down the now empty corridors how much he had lamented the lack of opportunity for getting any real exercise the previous year. It had been a rare treat to really let loose and run. Already on his first day, he was getting more opportunity than he had ever wanted.

He ran out the doors and past the greenhouses where third years were beating back an angry Venus bear trap with brooms and spells. He dashed past the quidditch field and through the pumpkin patch to a large wooden outbuilding that smelled of manure, sulphur, and burnt hair.

He slid to a halt in a squishy pile of what he hoped was mud and took his place amongst his classmates. He leaned heavily on Charlie as he tried to catch his breath without disturbing the rest of class. She grinned manically at him and pointed excitedly at a vibrant green and yellow caterpillar the size of a small dog she was holding on a leash.

He jumped back in surprise at the undulating creature and knocked into Edward who nearly dropped the creature he was holding. It was covered in large metallic scales and had coiled itself tightly into a ball giving it the appearance of a silver pineapple.

Mary, beside him held a sizeable bird cage. It contained something that looked rather a lot like a broken umbrella, though it was clearly breathing. He guessed it to be a massive bat. She seemed less than thrilled with it and was looking across the stables with longing at a unicorn.

As he found his breath and looked around, he could see that everyone was paired with a strange beast of some variety. Some had small caged beasts of their own, others were teamed together, holding things like man-sized lizards on leashes or staring uncertainly at a sleeping three headed tortoise with a shell big enough to live in.

Kuro was annoyed to discover that they were sharing the class with the Ravenclaws. Evelyn was standing near an enclosure containing a young unicorn with a couple other Ravenclaw girls, Odelia Huxley and Merissa Kleppmann. All three were looking terribly smug about it.

Professor Hagrid noticed the new arrival and shouted "Kuro" in a booming, boisterous voice that startled many of the animals and briefly woke the tortoise. "You got my note!" He tromped over and leaned down to speak directly to Kuro. "I let everyone else know in first period. I tried to tell you myself but I couldn't bloody well find you. We were just about ready to get going. You see, Professor McGonagall's just approved a new syllabus for this year. You'll all be responsible for the care of a magical beast."

He stood up to his full height and spoke more loudly, as if talking over a noisy room. "We could spend all year with book learning and it won't do you a lick of good if you can't do any of it for yourselves. Far better to get your hands dirty, I say. It's been a trick finding enough beasts for all of you." He paused and considered for a moment. "Well, it was easy to find enough, to be honest. But it was tricky finding enough that weren't gonna eat any of you."

Oliver, who was standing closer to the heads of the tortoise than he seemed comfortable with asked "Are you sure they're not dangerous, professor?"

"Well of course they're dangerous," laughed Hagrid. "Ellie there could bite your leg clean off if the mood took her. That's what you're here to learn. Proper care and handling. Any missing body parts will count against your final grades."

The jubilant mood in the stables took a sudden turn for the terrified as everyone started to regard the creatures they were handling as bombs with lit fuses. Everyone except Charlie, that is. She just shook her head, rolled her eyes, and muttered, "City kids."

Hagrid, taking no notice of the anxious atmosphere, brought Kuro over to a large table that must have been previously stacked with cages. "There's one beastie left for you, Kuro. And your mates were kind enough to leave you with a goodun. Here you go, gentle now." He thrust a lunchbox sized cage into Kuros hands. It was empty inside but for a small pile of twigs.

Hagrid started going over each creature with their caretakers and sharing some of their interesting properties with the class. They were introduced to Ellie the tritoise, who was over a century old. Each of her three heads ate different things, one vegetables, one wood, and one metal.

Mary had a rather surly flying monkey called Arthur, whose guano was a necessary component of engorgement potions. Edward's creature was an adamantine pangolin. It was completely covered in durable metal scales that make it nearly impregnable when it rolls into a ball. Charlie's creature was an Turkish tigerpillar, which would produces the thickest, strongest silk in the world.

Hagrid introduced the unicorn foal as Polaris and explained how unicorns are excellent judges of character. This brought a chorus of chuckles from the Hufflepuffs, for as he explained about her, Polaris left her assigned caregivers and wandered over to nuzzle Jennifer Tanaka.

Hagrid laughed heartily and told Jennifer that she should feel honoured. Evelyn and her cronies were furiously insulted and Evelyn turned a delightful shade of red in her anger at being snubbed by a unicorn.

Kuro didn't pay as much attention to the other introductions of the creatures as he really would have liked because he was distracted by his own charge. He peered into the cage from various angles and gave it a little shake, trying to determine if his creature might be invisible. He checked the cage door, worried that whatever had been in there had already escaped, but it was very firmly latched. By the time Hagrid had made it around to him, Kuro was searching under the table and through the hay on the floor for his missing creature.

"What are you doin down there Kuro?" Hagrid asked, crouching to see.

"I think my beast escaped," said Kuro with shame. "It's not in its cage."

"Wha? Already?" Hagrid snatched up Kuro's cage and looked inside. "He's not escaped. He's right here."

Hagrid handed the cage back to Kuro who examined the contents in confusion. "Is it hiding in the pile of sticks?" he asked as he tried to gently shake the pile apart to see what was inside.

"It is the pile of sticks," replied Hagrid as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

Kuro looked closer at the collection of dried twigs with flaking bark. They did seem to be stuck together. With enough imagination he could see that the sticks formed a couple of arms with long, needle-like fingers. It had four root-like legs, one of which seemed to be splinted with a toothpick and a bit of string. He wasn't certain if he was imagining the form, like shapes in a cloud, or if it was real until it blinked. Two small growths he'd taken for buds blinked, and blinked again. Now he recognized its face for what it was, he could see it had bulbous black eyes and a small, downturned mouth that made it look terribly forlorn.

"Poor little fellow," said Hagrid softly. "Blown out of the forest in a gale a couple weeks back. When I found him he had a broken stem and had lost all his leaves. No way to know which tree was his. He'd be part of some bird's nest before the day was out if I set him free. Bowtruckles aren't used to being on their own, neither. He'll be missing his family. It'll take a gentle hand to care for him. Think you're up to it?"

Hagrid's deep affection for the sullen piece of tinder was so moving that Kuro nodded in agreement despite having no idea what a bowtruckle was or how anyone might care for it.

Hagrid patted Kuro on the shoulder approvingly before standing to address the class. "None of you is quite ready to care for your beast on your own yet, I don't think. I'll be looking after them for you for a couple of weeks more while you learn yourselves up a bit. Next class is in the library. You'll be looking up all about your creature and writing me a paper on 'em."

At the end of class Kuro found himself a bit reluctant to leave the little bowtruckle on its own again. It seemed so lonely and frightened and its inky black eyes were so forlorn. However, Hagrid's assurance that he would be taking excellent care of all of their charges, and the loud rumbling in his very empty stomach helped urge him onward.

He dashed up to the dining hall in hopes of finding some leftovers from lunch in the break he had before the next class. He was in luck. There were sandwiches and fruit still stacked on the tables, as he reached for them, though, they vanished. It seemed a cruel prank. As he looked around the room, the full bowls emptied, the sandwiches disappeared, even the pitchers of milk and juice drained away to nothing as he watched.

His stomach growled in complaint. He shouted for the house elf cooks to return something to eat, but he got no response, only questioning stares from passing students in the hall. Too hungry to cope with the upcoming class, he searched for some scrap of food that had been missed. He scavenged around, hoping to find an apple that had rolled off the table or a mislaid cookie.

A girl's shout of mock surprise and fear made him jump, smacking his head painfully off of the table above him. Evelyn and a gang of her admirers had stopped at the door to the dining hall. "Oh, I'm sorry," she said with false sincerity, "I mistook you for one of the hairy giant's monsters. I thought you might have escaped your cage."

Kuro wished he had the sharp wit of Mary. All he could do was scowl back at her as she laughed simperingly at her own foul joke. "But it's just you, scrounging for scraps. I suppose old habits die hard."

She and her posse laughed heartily as they wandered away. They continued to make jokes to each other at his expense, laughing about how he was an elf playing wizard, and how he should be serving the food, not eating it, and how he should have been in one of Hagrid's cages.

Hungry, angry, and defeated, Kuro stormed off to prepare for what he expected would be the worst class of the term.


	9. Chapter 9 - Defense Against the Dark Arts

Kuro trudged through the hallways to the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. His hunger and the insults from Evelyn had put him in a terribly foul mood. He kept to back passages and tunnels to get there to avoid other people and also so he didn't have to look outside. The weather was so lovely and bright it seemed even the sun was taunting him today. He thought it best if he didn't pass through too many warm and cheerful sunbeams as he might start yelling at them.

He kicked the classroom door open when he reached it and slammed it behind him. The loud bang echoed around the empty class in a satisfying way. It startled some evil looking creatures being held in class containers and made something in an armoire at the front of the class thump around.

Kuro found a seat well to the side of the poorly lit room. He unslung his book bag roughly and settled in for a good spot of brooding before anyone else arrived. The door to the class swung open again, and Kuro looked to see who had arrived, but nobody entered. The door just drifted closed again. He worried a bit that he'd broken the latch when he slammed it. Though he noticed the chair behind the teacher's desk move slightly, making him suspicious that something else was going on.

A little while later, Gryffindors started to file in, followed by the Hufflepuffs. His friends were some of the last to enter. Fortunately the seats around him had been left open and they took up places next to him.

Were he in a better mood, he might have thought the spaces had been left as a courtesy by conscientious classmates. Today though, he felt more like they had been avoided as nobody would want to sit next to him. He couldn't blame anyone, either. He was scowling and glowering as fiercely as Azalea.

His mood was not improved by the atmosphere in the classroom. Everyone except him was excited to have Potter as a professor. They recounted tales of his heroism and glory, and tittered about his good looks and magical might. The Gryffindors were boasting about how he had been in their house when he was in school, as if that gave them some claim to share in his victories.

The only other person in the class that didn't seem excited to Potter as a prof was Edward. Kuro was surprised to find his friend wearing a distinctly long face. Kuro considered asking Edward about it, but Charlie beat him to it. "What's up Ed?" she asked boisterously. "I thought you liked Harry Potter."

"Of course I like him," Edward said defensively. "He's my godfather. It's just..." his hair cycled through several hues while he chose his words. "It's just that he basically raised me. I spend as much time at his house as my nan's. Imagine if your father was teaching a class."

Charlie's comically exaggerated look of shock and horror at the idea made Kuro laugh. It was hard to maintain a foul disposition with her around.

The boisterous noise in the classroom was silenced by the door slamming shut of its own accord. The room snapped to attention and a moment later Harry Potter appeared at the front of the class, pulling away a cloak of shimmering fabric that had rendered him invisible until that moment.

The class gasped as Potter posed pridefully for them. His famous invisibility cloak was draped over one arm. His famous holly and phoenix wand was held like a sword in the other hand. His famous round glasses sat on his famously arrogant face with its famous lightning bolt scar. His robes swirled around him dramatically before settling as though they were enchanted to look more theatrical. He looked over the class with a well-practiced prideful half-smile that belonged more on a Witch Weekly magazine cover.

The class applauded and whooped and cheered. Potter put on a phony expression of surprise and humility and made unconvincing gestures for the class to hush and settle.

Kuro rolled his eyes. He realized that it had been Potter that had opened the door before anyone else had arrived. He'd been sitting invisible for fifteen minutes, eavesdropping on the students, before revealing himself. It was made even less impressive having seen McGonagall do essentially the same thing to the first-years a couple of hours earlier.

After far too long, Potter encouraged the class to settle enough to begin performing a well-rehearsed introduction. "Thank you, thank you," he began, grinning arrogantly over the class. "I'm very honored to be here. I take it one or two of you have heard of me." He paused for laughter.

"You had a very good teacher last year, so I've some big shoes to fill," he said with false humility.

Bringing up Ms. Crawley did nothing to improve Kuro's attitude towards Potter. She had taught Kuro to use his wand, taken the time to help him in school, and had probably saved his life when he was kidnapped. She was rewarded for this by being thrown in Azkaban Prison because Potter found out she had been on the wrong side of the war a decade earlier.

Potter's voice turned dangerous and he began to sweep between desks ominously. "But fill them, I must. The world is full of dark and dangerous creatures: vampires stalk the night, barghests prowl the moors, and banshees roam the countryside. You need to be ready."

Charlie was enthralled, but Mary leaned close to Edward to whisper, "Is he always like this?"

"No," replied Edward very quietly. "He mostly talks about quidditch and the weather at home."

Potter did not notice the stifled giggles emanating from Kuro's side of the room and he continued his dramatic introduction. "This year you will learn to identify and defend yourself from all manner of beast, from troublesome cornish pixies, to murderous grindylows, and if we are very dedicated, dementors."

Potter paused to acknowledge Veronica Wood, whose hand was so far in the air it was threatening to detach from her arm. "Mr Professor Harry Potter sir," she babbled, "Is it true you fought a dementor in your third year?"

Potter flashed a smile to the class, giving them a chance to swoon. "Oh yes, a whole pack of them. I also fought a basilisk in my second along with a swarm of acromantula. I fought a dragon and a blast-ended-screwt in my fourth, then werewolves and death eaters and Voldemort himself..." He paused to allow everyone a chance to be suitably impressed. "But I wouldn't have survived any of it if it weren't for careful study and hard work in this class."

Edward leaned over to whisper to Kuro, "aunt Ginnie says Uncle Harry never studied at all in school and aunt Hermione did all the hard work."

Kuro snorted as he tried to hold in a laugh.

Potter was still too wrapped up in his performance to notice. "By the end of this year you will all be able to ward off a wraith, counter a collection of curses, and some of you may even conjure a patronus."

Kuro looked around at the other students. Potter had succeeded in brainwashing the lot of them. They all looked ready to slap on a badge and follow Potter into war. Kuro shook his head at them in disappointment.

Potter finished with his theatrical opening speech and moved to lean on the armoire that was sitting incongruously at the front of the room. "Today, though, we'll start with something easy to get you back in the swing of things. In here..." He rapped on the side of the cabinet. "Is a boggart. Can anyone tell me what a boggart looks like?"

"No!" exclaimed Charlie excitedly before clapping a hand over her mouth and putting her hand up.

Potter turned to Charlie with a cocky smile. "Care to elaborate, miss Cook?"

The rest of the explanation practically burst from Charlie, "Boggarts are shape changers. They change into whatever you're afraid of so a boggart can look like anything at all, except maybe birthday cake. I don't think anyone is afraid of birthday cake..."

"Very good Miss Cook. Five points to Gryffindor," said Potter.

"I'm in Hufflepuff, sir," corrected Charlie.

"Of course, sorry. Old habits. Regardless, what we are going to learn today is how to repel a boggart."

He moved to sit on the edge of his desk, looking casual and cool. "Boggarts will try to frighten you away, but if you are not frightened, if instead you laugh, they will flee back into their hiding place. They like dark dry places like cupboards or the space under beds. This one..." He waved to the armoire, "has been holed up in one of the store rooms here for a few years. There is a very simple spell for turning a boggart from horrifying to hilarious. Now, repeat after me... Riddikulus."

"Reddikulus." the class chanted back in unison.

"Once more with feeling. Reddikulus!"

"Reddikulus!" shouted the students enthusiastically.

"Very good." Potter clapped and rose to his feet. "Now the words are not enough. You also need the correct twirl of the wand and a good picture in your mind of something you find very, very funny.

After a few minutes of practice, he had everyone stand. With a wave of his wand the desks slid aside and the boggart filled armoire slid forward. "I think you're as ready as you can be. Would anyone like to go first?"

Charlie charged out in front and threw her hand in the air. "A brave volunteer. Are you sure you're not a Gryffindor." He winked at Charlie as though it was meant to be a compliment of some kind and then threw open the cabinet door.

A very familiar man stepped out of the armoire. He was pale and sneering, well dressed and cuel looking. It was Phineas Hearn, the man that had enslaved and tortured Kuro for most of his life, the man that had killed Charlie's mother.

The class gasped. Many knew the story of last year's attempted kidnapping and recognized the man at once. Kuro drew his own wand and ran without thinking to defend his friend from the monster that was striding towards her. Potter blocked his way, "you'll have your chance," he said under his breath. "Let her have her's"

Charlie had gone pale. Her wand was shaking in her hand and she was starting to inch backwards as the cartoonishly cruel looking copy of Hearn stepped closer.

"Now, Miss Cook," said Potter encouragingly. "You can do it."

Kuro saw the resolve return to Charlie. She squared her shoulders, spun her wand and shouted "Reddikulus!"

Hearn's robes turned bright pink with purple polka dots, his ears and nose grew large like an elephant's and he belched loudly. Charlie doubled up laughing and the whole class joined her. The boggart flailed frantically and retreated back into the armoire, dragging its distended nose behind.

"Teddy, why don't you give it a go." He waved Edward over and a ripple of laughter washed over the audience. Kuro was aware of the nickname. Hagrid had used it once, but Edward had never used it himself.

Edward blushed vibrantly. The famous Harry Potter had called him 'Teddy' in front of the whole class and it was immediately and painfully clear that he would never be rid of it. He slouched over to the spot in front of the armoire and cast the spell almost before the boggart had appeared. He made a hovering replica of a moon hatch like an egg revealing an absurd looking parrot inside.

Potter threw the door closed, oblivious to the damage he'd just done his godson. "Who's next?" he asked laughing along with the class.

Everyone took turns in front of the cabinet.

Sarah Mahdavi turned a festering zombie into a tap-dancing skeleton. Shaun cassidy covered his angry mother in chocolate sauce and sprinkles. Mary put a helicopter beanie and neon leg-warmers on a giant hairy spider.

One girl, Malorie Wood, did not successfully cast her charm. On her turn a huge snake slithered from the cabinet and she collapsed, completely paralysed with fear. She had to be taken to the hospital wing so Madame Pomfrey could give her something to help her calm down. Potter took this as an opportunity to lecture the class on not letting their fear control them. Kuro was strongly tempted to shove Potter in front of the cabinet and see how he felt about the horror inside.

When it was Kuro's turn, Potter urged him forward with the condescending encouragement, "Go get him tiger."

Potter seemed to think he knew what would come out of the cabinet for Kuro. He thought it would be Phineas Hearn, like it had been for Charlie. He was wrong, of course. Kuro knew what was behind those doors for him. Nobody was ever really surprised what form a boggart took for them.

The cabinet door swung open and the class held their breaths for the next horror to emerge. A small piece of hickory, darkly stained and highly polished, rolled out and onto the floor with a clatter.

Kuro was vaguely aware of the others in the class laughing at it, at him, but his attention was held too tightly by the object sitting idly on the stone floor. It was a wand. Not just any wand, it was the wand Phineas had used when doing dark magic. It was the wand that he used when punishing Kuro, when torturing Kuro. It was the wand that Kuro had seen kill Charlie's mother, the one that haunted his dreams.

Kuro could hardly get the breath in his lungs to say the words or find anything bright or funny in the world that would wash away the evil in that pointed little stick. He tried to focus, tried to think of something innocuous, harmless, comical. "Riddikulus," he muttered and he watched his shaky hand trace the motions with his wand.

The stick jumped into the air, spun several times and landed back where it started, but it was changed. It was pale and crooked and shabby looking, like a twig broken off of a pine tree and left in the sun for too long. It was a perfect replica of Kuro's wand.

The class laughed uproariously.

Kuro stepped forward and picked up the pathetic stick with a still shaking hand. He placed the boggart back in its armoire and closed the door. He walked back to the edge of the room feeling numb and exposed.

After class ended he joined his friends in the Hufflepuff common room. Charlie was going on about how cool the day had been and recounting all of the things he'd missed by being in other classes, with Edward and Mary chiming in occasionally with their thoughts. They spent a long time telling him about Care of Magical Creatures class and the various animals they were now in the care of as if he hadn't been there. She was excited about her tigerpillar, Edward was intrigued by his pangolin, and Mary was a bit disheartened by her grouchy monkey-bat with the valuable poop. She thought it rather ordinary and wished she could have had the unicorn.

When it came to defense against the dark arts they each had very few thoughts.

"It was weird," sulked Edward.

"It was horrifying," added Mary.

"It was awesome!" argued Charlie.

"It was bunk," said Kuro, more to himself than the others.

Nevertheless, it got their attention. "What do you mean?" demanded Charlie.

Kuro tried to put his thoughts into sensible words. "Don't you think it's odd that Potter knew all our names without asking."

"All the teachers know our names," said Charlie dismissively.

"But they didn't last year. Potter just met most of us for the first time." Kuro thought for a couple moments more. "And the whole thing with the boggart, we don't need that. Boggarts aren't dangerous."

"The hell they aren't," cursed Mary. "Did you see the size of that spider."

"But it didn't attack you," explained Kuro. "They don't attack anyone. They just try to scare you away. There were a few of them in Knockturn. People just avoided them. They're harmless."

"So?" said Edward. "What's your point?"

Kuro was worried about saying too much bad about Edward's godfather, so he tried to choose his words carefully. "I think he was using it to learn about us. Now he knows what we're all afraid of. Did you notice he didn't show us what he was afraid of? I think he might be here for a reason. Like he didn't really stop being an auror."

Edward looked dubious but Charlie leaped on the idea. "So he's undercover? That's so cool!"

The rest of the evening and dinner was spent listening to Charlie's increasingly elaborate and unlikely ideas about what Potter's secret mission might be.

With food in his stomach and hours of entertainment from Charlie, Kuro found his mood considerably improved. He turned in early, looking forward to a less frantic schedule the next day. He tossed his clothes from the day into the laundry hamper, climbed into his pyjamas, and drew the curtains on his four post bed.

Graeae was waiting for him. He rubbed her head and she made her strange gurgling noise of pleasure. It hadn't been a perfect day, not nearly, but at least it was interesting. It was better than the orphanage, at least.


	10. Club Day

By Friday afternoon, Kuro felt he had found the swing of things again. He quickly learned to enjoy his mad schedule because it gave him an excuse to run in the hallways. He didn't so much mind being with the wrong houses for some of his classes once he had gotten used to it. It let him spend time with his own thoughts, and though he didn't like to admit it, it was easier to pay attention without Charlie talking to him through every lecture.

The only class he really dreaded was Potions. It was by far his best subject, but unlike the year before, the professor had noticed.

In first-year, Professor Slughorn had gone to great lengths to forget that Kuro existed. Kuro wasn't rich or notable or related to anyone who was, and Slughorn only cared about students that had something to offer him.

Kuro hadn't gained in wealth or status over the summer, but he had become something of a curiosity. Slughorn greeted Kuro in their first class as if seeing in for the very first time.

"Kuro... Kuro... I've heard things about you, young Kuro," he said jovially. "Word has it that you may be half elf."

Kuro shifted uncomfortably as Slughorn looked him up and down. "Yes, yes. I see it now. Very nicely done." The complement didn't seem to be meant for Kuro. "You know that people have been trying to interbreed elves and humans for centuries with no success? Very tricky business. You're likely the only one there's ever been." Slughorn said it all in his usual bubbling and jovially informative way, but there was a dark glint in his eye that reminded him of how Mr. Borgin had looked at him.

As classes continued, Kuro would often look up to find Slughorn peering at him. He had a look in his eyes like he wanted to dismantle Kuro to figure out how it was done. Whenever Kuro turned in a sample of his potion at the end, Slughorn regarded it with deep interest as if it was miraculous that something like Kuro could have created it.

Kuro couldn't leave potions classes fast enough.

Care of Magical Creatures was the polar opposite. Hagrid was just as jovial and warm as Professor Slughorn, but didn't ask anything in return. He couldn't care less about Kuro's oddities and was so passionate about his subject that it was hard to not get caught up in his enthusiasm.

In addition, some kind soul had placed it as their last class on Fridays. Kuro wouldn't have believed that an hour trapped in a library on a sunny afternoon could have been that much fun.

Everyone shouted out facts about their beasts as they came across them. Hagrid bustled back and forth between tables of students asking them to tell him more and encouraging them to share the most interesting details with the rest of the class. This was made all the more entertaining by the fact the library was not at all built for someone of Hagrid's stature. He had to shuffle sideways between shelves and left a trail of fallen books in his wake wherever he went.

The school librarian, Madam Pince circled the rowdy class like a bird whose nesting area had been invaded by a herd of elephants.

It was hard to focus on his own reading in the excited clamor. Kuro had been trying to read the first paragraph on bowtruckles in a dusty tome called 'Scamander's Field Guide to Ambulatory Flora' for over ten minutes. He'd nearly gotten through the definition of their latin name when Edward shook him and demanded his attention.

"Look look," he said excitedly, pointing to a drawing of a wizard with an absurdly bushy mustache in gleaming scaled armour. "Adamantine pangolin scales are impervious to blades, fire (dragon and otherwise) and reflect most spells," he read. "When coiled into a tight ball the adamantine pangolin becomes an impregnable fortress. Its scales have been used to create some of the finest armours known to wizardkind, including the famous Hauberk of Gwydion."

"Aye, them scales have been a curse for the poor things," Hagrid interrupted as he loomed over their table. "The first thing an adamantine pangolin does when it sees trouble is to roll into a ball and sit dead still. That's all well and good against a hungry dragon or an angry fairy. Them'll just get tired and leave it be after a while, but a wizard'll just walk up and throw it in a sack. They've been hunted near to extinction for those scales. The one you've got, Gerald I call him, he was smuggled here all the way from India just cause some rich bloke thought it'd be fun to have in his menagerie. Criminal. He didn't even know what to feed it."

"What do you feed it?" asked Edward innocently.

Hagrid narrowed his eyes. "You're not getting out of your homework that easy. You tell me what he eats."

Edward grudgingly went back to his reading and Hagrid turned his attention to the others at the table. "Mary, you look to have wrote a whole book already. Well done."

Mary had several pages of notes from half a dozen books. She threw her pen down in frustration at his comment, though. "It's all about poop. All of it!" she lamented. "I can't find a thing about where it lives or what it eats, but there's whole chapters on what to do with its dung."

"Ruddy typical," agreed Hagrid, nodding wisely. "Most wizards don't much care where stuff comes from just so long as they can get it. Have you checked out 'In Search of the Snorkack' by Luna Lovegood? She's got her head screwed on straight, that one. There should be something useful in there."

The rest of the class continued in this fashion and between all the noise and interruptions, Kuro barely got any reading done. He withdrew a couple of books to read over the weekend and caught up with the others.

Returning to their common room proved to be more of a problem than expected. They knocked on the barrel in the secret rhythm to reveal the hidden entranceway, but when it opened they found it so packed with other students they couldn't get inside.

"What's going on?" demanded Charlie as the tried to muscle her way through.

"Club sign up day tomorrow," replied Neale Barnholden, also caught in the entryway. "They've just posted the list."

Kuro hadn't taken much notice of the student clubs the previous year. Most didn't accept first years and he'd had more pressing things on his mind than learning wizard chess or gardening.

Now in second year, there were dozens of options. They debated the merits of each on their way to supper.

Charlie was dead set on joining the quidditch team. She told them about her plans as food began appearing on the tables. "I want to be a beater," she said, grabbing a chicken leg and using it to demonstrate her skill with a bat. "But I'm probably not big enough to get the position this year, so I'm gonna try out for chaser. I think I've got a shot at second string."

Kuro also reached for some chicken but found it out of reach. He had been having the same problem all week. His seat seemed to be surrounded by boiled potatoes at supper, hard boiled eggs at lunch, and porridge at breakfast. He was constantly having to ask for things to be passed and often missed the best food. "Could you pass the chicken, Charlie?"

She looked to pass it to him but couldn't find the platter. It had been emptied or passed on out of sight. She did offer the remains of her drumstick, though. Kuro waved off the offer and made due with boiled vegetables and the remains of a meat pie.

"So what are you guys going to do?" Charlie asked after concluding a lengthy lecture on the importance and nobility of quidditch. "Going to try out for the team with me?"

Kuro laughed at the idea. He could barely make a broom go in the direction he pointed it. Mary wasn't terribly better and didn't have much appreciation of quidditch, having come from a muggle family. Edward wanted to, but he said his limbs change size when he gets nervous or excited, and that was not only embarrassing but also against quidditch regulations. Charlie was a little disappointed to be going on her own, but the other three agreed to go watch the tryouts after they went to the club demonstrations together the next day.

Heading to bed that night, Kuro found himself possessed with an unfamiliar feeling. It was a restless giddiness, an eager bubbling curiosity about the next day. He was surprised and a little pleased to discover that he was actually looking forward to a school activity.

His mood soured slightly, though, when he couldn't find his pyjamas. They were not in his chest of drawers where he expected, nor on, around, or under his bed. He looked accusingly at Graeae for a moment before considering that they might not have been washed.

He went to the hamper to find quite a pile of unwashed robes and his own pyjamas. It was odd, he thought. In the past the house elves would have cleaned all the laundry he put in the hamper before dinner that night. He assumed that they must be unusually busy, or perhaps some had quit. Regardless, he put on his unwashed night clothes and did his best to sleep.

Breakfast was rushed the next day as Charlie had to be on the quidditch pitch early and Edward and Mary were keen to make it to all of the demonstrations by the other clubs. Kuro barely had time to complain that the bacon had run out before it got to him before being hauled off to watch the various clubs try to recruit new members.

The botany club was, as Kuro had expected, very dull. Their demonstration included several upper year students trying to explain that a napping slumbergera cactus was actually very interesting if only they'd hang about until it woke in a couple of hours. Mary commented quietly that it could be a dozen times more interesting and it would still fall behind navel lint for interestingness.

Wizard Chess Club and the Muggle Games Group were equally unappealing. Kuro enjoyed their presentations, though, because they were in the same room and kept shouting over each other and explaining why the other club was much worse than theirs.

"They only play one game, we've got loads," said a representative from the Muggle Games contingent, gesturing to an array of colourful cardboard boxes.

"Why have many games, when you can play the greatest game?" protested her counterpart in the Chess Club.

"Marvel at muggle ingenuity!"

"Join the ancient tradition of wizard geniuses!"

"We've got dice!"

"Our pieces move by themselves!"

The trio of friends left before the sales pitch could degenerate completely into a brawl.

The next room housed the Transfiguration Club. They had a much better presentation. They pulled elaborate hats and flowers and a small aeroplane with a working engine out of thin air, they transformed a cat into a clawfoot tub with a working faucet, and a couple of them transformed themselves into animals.

Kuro was impressed and watched with interest, but he was ineligible to join since he hadn't passed first-year transfiguration yet. Mary, however, was transfixed. She gaped at the boy that had turned into a crane and glided elegantly around the room. "I could learn to fly?" she said wistfully.

One of the club organizers overheard her. "Looking to be an animagus eh?" she asked, sidling up to Mary.

"Is that what he is?" Mary asked, still staring at the elegant white bird.

"He sure is. Several of us are. It takes a lot of training and practice, but we can show you how."

That was the moment they lost Mary. She made her apologies and excuses, but something about the draw of turning into an animal kept her from leaving that room.

"I don't get what the big deal is with animagi," said Edward dismissively as he and Kuro moved on. "I turn into an animal every month and it's rubbish. Being a person is way better."

The culinary club was next up. While they failed to entice either boy to join, Kuro very much appreciated their skills and he devoured a piece of apple strudel they had conjured.

After that were choir, debate club, and a whole collection of fan clubs. There was one for each of the major quidditch teams, a couple for bands like Delphi and the Muses, and one for Harry Potter which was deeply unsettling for both Kuro and Edward. The 'Potterheads' had a life-size animated statue of him which kept changing poses and a variety of post cards of him with hearts blooming around his face. Kuro and Edward did not linger there long.

The last on the list was the Duelling club. Kuro wasn't surprised to find it mostly occupied by Gryffindors.

Kuro and Edward were pounced on by club members the moment they entered and hauled off to different duelling pistes. "Emory Schlager, pleased to meet you," said the sturdy boy pushing Kuro into position. "Come on let's get you into a duel. No better way to know if you'll like it than to try it yourself."

"I'm not sure about this," protested Kuro trying to escape around the bigger boy.

"Nonsense," he replied. He pushed Kuro back into position. "Look, he's not going to hurt you. He's just going to cast a simple disarming charm. You just try to block it and shoot back the best you've got at him."

Jonathan, one of the other boys from the orphanage was few yards away, at the other end of a long, narrow rug. He bowed and drew his wand. "What if I hurt him?" asked Kuro.

"He's an experienced duellist." laughed Emory. "There's nothing a second year like you can throw at him that he can't block." Emory looked at Kuro more closely for a moment. "You are a second year aren't you? First-years aren't allowed to duel."

Kuro felt his eyes narrow at being mistaken for a first-year and he suddenly had a desire to fight.

"Oh, I recognize you now." Emory laughed and patted Kuro on the back. "You're the elf boy, Kubo, right. Sorry for the mistake."

Kuro was flush with distaste for Emory and his whole club, however he had a deepening desire to prove himself to them. He drew his wand and turned to face his opponent.

Emory shouted instructions. "Salute your opponent!"

Jonathan raised his wand straight in front of his faces, and then dropped it crisply to the side. Kuro copied the gesture. 

"Take your positions!"

Jonathan adopted a carefully practiced stance. He looked focused and dangerous. Kuro just stood facing the much more experienced boy, the anger and will to fight draining from him as quickly as it had formed.

"On the count of three, I shall say 'duel' and you may loose your spells. One... Two..."

Emory leaned over and whispered helpfully to Kuro "He's going to use 'expelliarmus' you should use 'protego.' Three! Duel!"

Kuro saw Jonathan casting. All sense left him and he was back in Knockturn alley being chased by Phineas. Fear gripped him. He could barely breathe let alone cast spells. He understood that he needed to cast the shield charm, but in his panic the memory of how to do it was nowhere to be found. He saw the wand being leveled at him and the words being shouted and he dove to the ground to dodge.

The spell flew over his head evoking a startled yelp from behind. Instinctively he pointed his wand down the piste to the bigger boy and fired off the only spell he could remember. Without a word the green bolt of paralyzing light shot out.

In his surprise, the other boy failed to block it and he crumpled to the ground.

Kuro's first instinct was to run, but Emory caught him by his collar and hauled him to his feet. He had a nosebleed from where his own wand had struck him in the face, having been hit by the spell that was meant for Kuro. "That was brilliant!" he exclaimed "Not entirely by the book, but an excellent first play. Well done, you'll have to join up."

"Um..." said Kuro struggling to escape. "Not today. I have to think about it."

"Don't think too long." Emory smiled brightly, though his bloody nose made him look mad and dangerous. "Practices start next week."

Kuro pushed through the crowd to retrieve Edward, but found him laughing gleefully as he exchanged spells with a club member, each one bouncing off of the other's shield charms. He had to wait over a minute before Edward was finally disarmed.

"I'd like to go now," said Kuro pleadingly.

"Go ahead," said Edward. "I think I'm going to stay. This is great. Wish Charlie luck for me."

"Yeah... okay," replied Kuro, a little put out.

"Another round Teddy?" he heard someone shout as he left the dueling club and headed outside to the quidditch tryouts.

Kuro couldn't help but feel a little betrayed. His friends had all chosen to join up with clubs that Kuro either couldn't or wouldn't join. At least he would keep his promise and support Charlie during her tryout.

He threw on a cloak and marched out into the crisp air of an early autumn day. The tryouts were well underway by the time he clambered up to a seat on the stands. They were largely empty, maybe a dozen others had come out to cheer on friends or scout the competition. Notably, Azalea was camped out by herself near the other end of the field where the Slytherins were holding their Tryouts.

Thankfully she did not seem to notice him. She was staring at the black streaks swirling around the far goal hoops, her hands gripping the bench tightly and looking as though she were afraid to blink. Bella must be trying out, thought Kuro.

He settled in as well as one can on cold, wooden bleachers and watched. Unlike the actual games, none of the hopefuls wore house colours, and there was no helpful announcer to explain to him what was happening. From his vantage point, the players looked like little more than leaves caught in the wind. He couldn't tell which of the fluttering streaks was charlie, or even if she was on the field. For a moment he worried that he'd missed the Hufflepuff tryouts entirely and he was watching Gryffindors.

He couldn't be sure who to cheer for, so he just applauded every goal. None of the others in the stands were cheering and the gave him dirty looks when he did. The only other person there making any noise at all was Vincent Kagen, Oliver's older brother. He played keeper on the Ravenclaw team and was shouting instructions at whichever windblown rag was Oliver. Each direction seemed to contradict the previous. "You're approaching too slowly! Don't rush it! Wait for your shots! Wait for them! You're waiting too long!"

Kuro hoped for Oliver's sake that he couldn't hear his brother.

The tryout concluded and Kuro climbed down from the stands to see Charlie, but by the time he got to the field, the whole group of them had moved most of the way up to the castle. She wasn't waiting for him. Why would she. She expected him to be with Edward and Mary.

He wandered back up to the castle, not really wanting to but not having anywhere else to go. He wandered the halls aimlessly for a while, just getting lost in the endless corridors and labyrinthine passages. He told himself that he enjoyed being alone and exploring the castle, but he didn't seem to be listening. He was being overtaken by a gloom that seemed to pervade the castle.

Rather than fighting the feeling, he made his way to a dark and unused room in the dungeons. He lit his wand so he could see and sat reading his book on ambulatory plant

It didn't help his mood. Bowtruckles, he discovered, were very closely tied to their tree. They made their homes in trees of wand quality wood and they protected the trees from harm. Once a bowtruckle found such a tree, they would spend their whole lives in it, eating any infesting insects and fighting off threats. A bowtruckle separated from its tree could die of despair. Kuro felt a lump forming in his throat and his eyes getting wet as he thought about the poor injured creature trapped in a cage, maybe never to return home.

A shuffling of feet shook him from his sulking. He wiped his nose with his sleeve and threw the offending book into his bag where it bounced off of some shelves and landed with a thunk at the bottom. He straightened himself up and tried to look nonchalant, not wanting to look suspicious or upset. The footsteps approached quickly, but whatever was making the noise wasn't visible. They came to a stop outside the little dungeon room.

Kuro only knew of one invisible thing at the school. "Potter?" he said at the empty hallway.

There was no reply, but Kuro found the silence unconvincing. "The room is all yours if you want it. I'm done here."

Kuro stormed out of the room and heard booted feet move aside as he left, trying and failing to remain silent. He left the dungeon and decided that if he was doomed to spend the day alone being stalked by Potter, he could at least keep the bowtruckle company. With a renewed sense of purpose, he went out to the stables.

Hagrid was there when he arrived, tossing a bushel of cabbages into Ellie the tritoise's stall. "Hello there, Kuro. What brings you here? Shouldn't you be with your friends on a fine day like this?"

Kuro was a little wounded to be reminded of his abandonment. "They're doing club things." Kuro said, trying to sound casual.

"Aren't you doing any club things?" asked Hagrid in a tone that made it sound like Kuro very much should be.

"I thought I should focus on my studies, professor." Kuro lied.

Hagrid laughed heartily. It made Kuro feel very foolish until Hagrid gave him an encouraging thump on the back that nearly knocked him over and said "I'll never get used to that 'professor' business. I'm just Hagrid, always have been, always will be. Especially on Saturdays."

"Sorry, sir." said Kuro.

Hagrid shook his head and chuckled again, as though Kuro had missed the point of something. "Well what can I do for you then. I take it you're not here to help me muck out the Unicorn stall. It's a real mess, rainbow glitter everywhere."

"No," Kuro said very quickly. "I was just reading about Bowtruckles and it said they can get very lonely if they're away from their tree. I thought I should keep it company."

"That's a right fine thing to do," said Hagrid, sounding very moved. "Why don't you feed it today. Do you know what he eats yet?"

Kuro flipped open his book and scanned the pages for a clue. "Lice?" he read a little uncertainly.

Hagrid Grinned. "Woodlice," he corrected handing kuro a small pail of small grey pellets.

Kuro took the pail and picked out one of the pellets. He dropped it when it uncurled, revealing more than a dozen tiny legs. It bounced on the floor and scuttled beneath some hay. "They're still alive?" he asked.

"Gotta be," replied Hagrid. "You'd insult the poor thing if you tried to feed them dead ones. Here let me open up the cage for you."

Hagrid pulled out a screwdriver to remove the top of the wood and metal mesh enclosure. Kuro looked around at the other cages, which mostly had simple catches keeping them closed, "Why is the cage screwed closed?" he asked.

"Clever little thing'll escape if I don't. They's right curious and will poke them needly little fingers in everywhere looking for grubs and such. They'll open a latch 'fore you can blink and have most locks open in minutes digging for food. Here, I'll show you."

Hagrid gently coaxed the tangle of twigs that was the bowtruckle out and set him down on a table beside the cage of the adamantine pangolin. Its protuberant black eyes fixed on the keyhole instantly. It limped up to it on his root-like legs and began probing it. Its many tiny fingers darted in and out at all angles and the lock clicked open moments later.

The pangolin reacted to the unexpected release by rolling into a tight ball and quivering slightly.

"Give him a woodlouse before he terrorizes Gerald," chortled Hagrid.

Kuro rolled one of the little bugs out onto the table. The bowtruckle caught sight of it and pounced, skewering it with its sharp fingers and chewing it down quickly. Kuro tossed a few more woodlice out and asked, "does it have a name?"

"Not yet," Hagrid admitted. "Plants don't really have boys and girls so I can never think of good ones for them."

Kuro considered the strange little stick as it chomped on the woodlice like tiny pasties. He tried to think of good plant words for a flimsy little stick person with pointy fingers "What's that thing you call a bit of rosemary?"

Hagrid thought for a moment. "A sprig?" he suggested. "A sprig of rosemary? That sound right?"

"Yeah," agreed Kuro. "Sprig," he told the bowtruckle. "I'm going to call you Sprig"

Kuro spent the rest of the day with Hagrid and Sprig. They even shared dinner in Hagrid's little stone cottage. Hagrid told Kuro stories of all the animals he cared for, and sprig explored Kuro's hair and clothes searching for bugs. Sprig also found and claimed Kuro's wand, possibly thinking it was a friend and was very upset to let it go at the end of the night.

Kuro strolled into Hufflepuff House well past curfew. They were happy to see him as it gave them a chance to retell the stories of their days again. Edward gave inflated retellings of his first duels, Mary talked wistfully about her aspirations of becoming an animagus, and Charlie replayed every moment of the Quidditch tryout for them. She acted out her best plays, bounding from desk to couch and diving beneath chairs around the common room.

She had earned a place as a second-string chaser. "I'll likely never play a real match," she said unconcernedly. "But I get to play all the practices, which is better anyway. No Slytherins in practice. They play dirty."

Kuro went to bed feeling a bit better about having been left alone that day, but again he was troubled by a lack of clean pajamas. He scavenged them out of the laundry hamper yet again. "Edward, has your laundry been getting done regularly?" he asked as he pulled on his nightshirt.

"Of course," replied edward, pulling his own crisp, clean nightclothes out of his drawer. "Every day, like always."

"When did you put them in to get cleaned?" Kuro demanded.

"This morning, before we went for breakfast," replied Edward. "Why?"

"Mine haven't been done all week," said Kuro, annoyed.

"Maybe they're too smelly to even wash," jabbed Shaun.

"They will be soon," admitted Kuro. "Hold on..." Kuro had looked back in the hamper at the other undone laundry. "What's going on?" he snarled. "Why isn't my laundry getting done?"

He overturned the hamper and dumped out the contents. It all looked like his. He checked his chest of drawers, it was all but empty.

The others just stared at Kuro in sympathetic confusion. "Don't know mate," said Oliver. "Did you do something to anger the staff?"


	11. Chapter 11 - An Elf in the Cupboard

Kuro's laundry problem did not improve over the coming weeks.He tried hiding his clothes inside those of his roommates', but they were always left behind in the hamper. He even tried tying one of his robes tightly to Edward's, but he found it at the end of the day, still in the hamper, while Edward's was neatly folded in his drawer.

The oddities at the dining hall continued as well. All of the best food was laid far from where he sat, and if he ever showed up late, he would see the tables empty at his approach. He started to notice other things as well: his bed was never made, other's bedside desks were tidied while his was always as he left it, and misplaced items never found their way back to him in the way others' did.

He was certain it was a conspiracy of the elves that secretly did all of the housework at Hogwarts. He wanted to ask them about it, but they were incredibly difficult to find. Most students didn't even know that there were house elves at Hogwarts. With them deliberately avoiding him, Kuro had no luck at all finding them. He left notes for them, but there was never any response. He tried to stay up late to catch them tending the fire, but they never appeared when he was in the room. He tried to find the kitchen where many of them worked, but nobody knew where it was.

"You should tell Madame Hooch," Edward Told him. "She's our head of house. It's her job to fix things."

Kuro tried.

Her response was about as he expected. "Are you honestly complaining that the chicken is being served too far from your seat of preference?" she scoffed and puffed on her pipe. "Consider it an opportunity to get a bit more exercise. All the sitting you students do isn't good for you and I don't recall seeing you on the quidditch pitch working up a sweat."

Kuro fumed. He figured he got twice the exercise as anyone else in the school just trying to get to his classes. She waved him off with assurances that he was imagining it.

He looked for someone to commiserate with, but found them all to be busy.

"Sorry, Kuro, I'm late for practice," said Charlie, as she hopped through the common room tugging on her quidditch boots. "We're having extras while the weather's good."

"Good luck," said Kuro, trying to hide his disappointment.

He sat down next to Mary on a couch and sighed, hoping that she'd understand his plight. She grimaced guiltily at him.

"What is it," asked Kuro.

"Well I have a transfiguration club meeting tonight," she said. "But I could miss it if you need to talk or something. Just, we're starting animagus training tonight, so I was hoping..."

"Oh, no, go," said Kuro. Being an animagus was just about all Mary had talked about since she joined the club. He couldn't have her skip training just to hear him winge.

Kuro gave up and headed to his dorm only to be nearly trampled by Edward on his way out. "I've got duelling club tonight," he said excitedly. "We're learning a tripping charm tonight. Then I need to get to Hagrid's; It's the full moon tomorrow. I promise I'll show you the charm when I get back."

"Thanks," replied Kuro feebly, imagining the evening he would soon spend falling over. "Have fun."

Kuro tried to be happy for his friends. They were happy and excited about their new hobbies, but Kuro was lonely and it was hard not to be resentful. At least, he told himself, he wasn't completely alone. He did have the company of Graeae and Sprig, though they weren't very good listeners. Graeae was stone deaf and he wasn't sure that Sprig even had ears.

Sprig now lived in Kuro's bag. After a couple of weeks of caring for the bowtruckle, Sprig had become quite attached to Kuro. Hagrid said that Sprig became depressed and refused to eat when Kuro wasn't around and told Kuro to keep Sprig with him.

It was mostly fun to have Sprig, though he never knew which drawers in his book bag would be locked and he had to keep a very close eye on his wand or Sprig would steal it.

Graeae took a while to warm up to the bowtruckle. She wasn't quite sure if a walking pile of twigs was something to attack or run away from. Once she discovered that Sprig would scratch her head and back while rummaging through her fur looking for fleas to eat, she warmed up to the little plant considerably.

As the weeks wore on, little changed. Kuro was often on his own, bored and lonely. Classes had become routine; Azalea and Victoire would fight for attention in Transfiguration while Kuro did his best to avoid it; Slughorn would ask strange and prying questions of Kuro and use him as a guinea pig to demonstrate the effects of his brews; Kuro would leave every Arithmancy class unsure which way was up and whether anything really existed; He looked forward to Care of Magical Creatures, and dreaded History of Magic; Charms was fun and Astronomy was not.

They also started Wizard Wellness in the third week. It was an odd class taught by Madame Hooch. It took the place of their first-year flying classes in their schedule but was much less exciting. It was only held once a week and the girls and boys were divided into separate classes. It covered such exciting topics as how to avoid contracting dragon pox, recognizing signs of potion abuse, and basic protective charms against tooth decay. It was a very boring class, made worse by Madam Hooch's habit of explaining everything through quidditch analogies, which Kuro didn't understand.

Defense Against the Dark arts was a continually baffling experience. Potter wasn't bad at teaching when he actually managed to get around to doing it. Unfortunately he spent much of his lectures giving dire warning and bragging of his adventures.

Kuro trudged into class on a gloomy October afternoon, expecting it to be no different.

Potter paced the front of the class, hands clasped behind his back, black robes billowing behind him. His brow was creased with concern. "What..." he paused dramatically before completing his question, to ensure he had the attention of the entire class, "is the first rule in defending yourself against the dark arts?"

"Constant vigilance," came the well practiced refrain from the class. Potter had been drilling this into everyone's heads since the first lecture.

"Very good," said Potter, stopping his pacing and facing the class. His eyes swept over them, scanning for weakness. "We have thus far addressed the threats of grindylows, kelpies, banshees, vampires. Today we begin work on something new."

An uncertain murmur of speculation rumbled through the class.

"What can you tell me..." asked Potter, his voice serious and threatening, "about dementors?"

A few hands slowly raised with trepidation. They weren't so much afraid to answer, but uncomfortable thinking about the creatures. "Yes, Oliver."

"They can fly?" offered Oliver Kagen.

"True," said Potter. "Not only can they fly, but they never land. They float, which means they make nearly no noise when they move. Anything else?"

"Muggles can't see them," said Malorie wood.

"That's right," Potter congratulated. "Muggles just feel their effects. Which brings the most important thing to know about Dementors. What do they eat? Yes, Jennifer."

"Souls," said Jennifer uneasily.

Potter nodded but added more commentary. "Yes, the kiss of a dementor will suck the soul from your body, but they will only rarely Perform it. Only when starved or if they have reason to kill. They prefer to stay hidden and unnoticed. They primarily feed on hope, happiness, and love, which they can draw from their prey at a distance. Even approaching a dementor will fill you with dread like you have never experienced as they feed on all of your positive memories, leaving you with nothing but despair. They are foul, merciless, and sinister. There is but one sure defense against a dementor. Does anyone know what it is?"

"The patronus charm!" exclaimed Charlie in excitement, having missed the dour tone of the lesson so far.

"Right," said Potter, a little taken aback by her enthusiasm. "It's a charm made of so much happiness and light that dementors cannot digest it. A patronus charm is the best defense against a dementor. A basic patronus takes the form of a white mist and can effectively ward off one Dementor. With practice, you can also create a corporeal patronus that takes the form of an animal and can fight off a whole swarm of the monsters. With dedication, I expect every one of you to be able to form a corporeal patronus by the end of the year. Yes, Malorie."

Malorie wood had raised her hand. "I thought the patronus charm was very advanced and difficult. My dad said only seventh years learned it for their NEWTs"

"Better times, then," said Potter. "That was before the war, back when the dementors worked for the Ministry. They were the guards at Azkaban Prison, then. Now they roam free, you could run into one in any dark alleyway. You need to be prepared. Also, the charm may be difficult, but it is not very advanced. I was thought to be exceptional for having learned it in my third year." He puffed himself up proudly for a moment before deflating comically. "Since we started teaching it earlier, we've found that it's actually easier for kids to learn. It's not like most other spells. It comes more from the heart. Too much magical training makes it harder."

Mary put her hand up as well. "Is it true that animagi turn into the same animals as their patronus?"

"Yes it is," he said more brightly. "And a very good question. It is one of the most interesting things about the spell. The patronus is a part of you, a part you might not even know about. It might be something from where you come from like a lion," he gestured to Mary, "or a Panda," he gestured to Jennifer Tanaka. "You don't know what it's going to be until you've successfully cast it."

This seemed curious and Kuro leaned over and whispered to Mary as Potter prattled on "I didn't know there were many lions in Liverpool."

"There aren't," grumbled Mary through gritted teeth.

Potter continued. "It might be a reflection of someone or something you love. Some even run through family lines. I have the same patronus as my father, who was also an animagus of the same form. You won't know until it forms, though."

Potter spent the next twenty minutes demonstrating and correcting their wand form and having them repeat the incantation 'expecto patronum' over and over until they had the right emphasis and accent on the 'O's.

Nodding with satisfaction he cleared the desks to the side of the room and had the students face him in a line. "The words are not enough in the patronus charm," he explained. "You must also pour into it a powerfully happy memory. I would like everyone to close your eyes and find your happiest memory and focus on it, really live in it."

Kuro closed his eyes and thought. He first thought of meeting Charlie on the train on his first trip to Hogwarts, but the memory was quickly invaded by Evelyn who mocked him, and the feelings of imprisonment and fear. He thought of Christmas, and his first ever gifts and the elf feast but he couldn't keep from thinking about the locket that charlie received, the one with a picture of her dead mother, a woman Kuro had watched die at the hands of his master. He tried thinking of the night that all of Hufflepuff house camped out in the common room in support of Edward after he was revealed to be part werewolf, but an evil little voice in the back of his mind reminded him of all the nights he had spent sleeping there in exile without anyone coming to support him."

Charlie on his left seemed to be having no such difficulty. She had reduced herself to hysteric laughter recalling whatever memory she had chosen. Kuro wished he could be as uncomplicatedly joyful as Charlie. A couple minutes of trying to think happy thoughts had nearly brought him to tears.

He looked around at his other classmates who were displaying a range of smirks and grins. Something else caught his eye as he observed the class, a glint of something shiny moving in a small cupboard. The door was slightly ajar. Kuro tried to get a better look without being noticed by Potter. He squinted, pretending to keep his eyes closed and shifted slightly, pretending to ponder. Something was definitely in there. Something with eyes. It was watching the class.

Kuro thought he knew what it was, a house elf. They were probably waiting for class to be over so they could tidy up. This was his chance to ask an elf about his laundry. Kuro made plans to hide at the end of class and catch the elf as it left the cupboard.

Potter pulled his attention back to spellwork. "When you feel ready, go ahead and try," he said.

The other students started to wave their wands and shout "Expecto patronum," mostly with little effect. There were a couple sputters of silver smoke and Veronica Singh managed to get a weak but persistent stream to fill the space in front of her like a shield. Kuro, of course, produced nothing. Not a wisp of white smoke.

Potter shouted encouragement. "Happier memories! More focus on those happy feelings. Think of the day you won the big game, or your very best christmas present, or your first kiss. Something really overwhelmingly brilliant."

Charlie collected herself enough to actually try casting and with a gleeful laugh she shouted "Expecto patronum!"

Kuro was knocked back and Potter, standing downrange dove for cover as a huge, bright white stallion burst from her wand and galloped across the classroom. It's glowing mane left flowing streaks of light as it ran and its single horn blazed blindingly white. It exploded into a shower of glimmering stars as it crashed into the far wall.

"A unicorn," Kuro heard Mary mutter dejectedly beside him. "Of course her patronus is a bloody unicorn."

Potter collected himself from the bookcase he had crashed into and congratulated Charlie. "Well done Charlotte. Take ten points for Hufflepuff. I've never seen anyone get it on the first go."

The bell rang, preventing further praise. "We'll be practicing a little each class," Potter shouted after the rapidly evacuating students. "Keep thinking about happy memories, I want a short report on what you're concentrating on for next class."

Kuro used the commotion of the emptying classroom to conceal himself. He ducked into a corner behind a yeti skeleton and crawled into his bag. He laid on the floor of the room inside his satchel, peeked out through the opening, and waited.

Several long minutes after the classroom had cleared, the cupboard door swung slowly open. A tiny bare foot stepped tentatively out onto the classroom floor. The elf emerged slowly, looking around carefully for any observers, clearly prepared to vanish the moment anyone appeared.

He was the smallest elf Kuro had ever seen, maybe half of Kuro's height. Kuro hadn't met a lot of elves, but he guessed this one to be quite young. His mottled brown skin drooped on his face and rumpled in folds on his neck like he hadn't grown into it yet. His hands and feet were absurdly large for his stature and his fingertips nearly dragged the ground as he walked. His bright, innocent eyes flashed fretfully around the room. He reminded Kuro, in many ways, of a lost puppy.

Kuro noted that he wasn't a free elf. He wore nothing but a teatowel tabard emblazoned with the Hogwarts crest. This made Kuro's chest ache. Only about half of the elves at Hogwarts were free, and seeing one that looked so young be a slave, even a slave to a good master, filled Kuro with sympathy.

Sympathy or no, Kuro needed to ask that elf some questions. He waited for the elf to be distracted before creeping out of his bag. Kuro stalked up silently behind the tiny creature as it worked to tidy the papers on Potter's desk.

Kuro pounced, grabbing the elf by the ankle. The elf let out a muted squeak of surprise. Then with a crack like a snapping branch he disappeared, swirling into a pinprick of emptiness and pulling Kuro along with him.

Kuro had only apparated once before, alongside Professor McGonagall but it was not a sensation he would soon forget. He stretched out, formless between spaces and fluttered along like a silk ribbon caught in the wind. A moment later he was whole again. He lying on the ground, still holding the elf's ankle in a cold, dark stone hallway he didn't recognize. The dampness and the sound of waves crashing nearby made him think it was probably a section of the dungeons.

He didn't have long to consider his surroundings, though. Kuro manage to get out the words "Can I ask you..." before the elf noticed him. He looked in utter confusion at Kuro, still firmly gripping his ankle, squeaked again in panic and blinked out of existence.

Kuro was again pulled along with him, stretched out as a stream of thought and snapping back into being in a broom closet. Another shocked squeak, a crack, and they were in a cell in the dungeons.

Crack! They appeared in a tool shed.

Crack! They fell out of the air into the middle of the forbidden forest.

Crack! They were hundreds of feet above Hogwarts and starting to fall.

"Letgoletgoletgoletgo!" squealed the diminutive elf as it struggled to free itself.

"No!" shouted Kuro. He was not going to give up this opportunity just because he was plummeting towards solid ground. "I need to ask you something"

The elf continued to struggle as the ground came rushing up to meet them. The elf seemed resolved to let them both splatter, but Kuro had fallen from great heights before. He pulled out his wand, which elicited a whole new series of terrified shrieks from the elf.

Just before impact, Kuro shouted "Wingardium Leviosa!" and, as always, the spell backfired, slowing their descent. Before they hit earth, though, the elf apparated one more and they came crashing down in a pile of old and dusty mattresses in a neglected chamber somewhere in Hogwarts.

They lay staring at each other for several long moments. Kuro's heart was racing and it seemed the elf's breathing was keeping pace.

"How is you doing that? Wizardses cannot apparate in Hogwarts." it demanded in a small, squeaky voice.

"I'm not apparating," sait Kuro. "You are. You're pulling me with you."

"I is not." Argued the elf and apparated again.

Crack! They were in a back room of the train station in Hogsmeade.

The elf looked down at Kuro's hand, still firmly clenched around his ankle. "Please be letting me go," it pleaded, starting to look desperate.

"No," said Kuro resolutely. "Not until you answer my questions."

"I is not answering any wizards' questions." The elf's tiny face scrunched up defiantly.

"I just want to know why the elves aren't doing my laundry," explained Kuro. "That's all."

The defiance in the elf's eyes was replaced by a look of deep confusion, followed by understanding, then horror. "You is not a wizard! You is the Kuro monster!" It shrieked like a frightened mouse and then apparated again.

Crack! They were high in the rafters above the illusory ceiling in the great hall.

Crack! They were in an alcove in the owlery.

Crack! They were in a dark tower attic.

"I'm not letting go!" said Kuro Firmly.

Kuro saw a familiar look wash over the elf. It was something Kuro had experienced many times before in his days as a slave to Phineas. The elf had disobeyed an order. His curse of servitude was going to make him punish himself.

Kuro grabbed the elf, hugging him tightly and pinning his arms to his side. The elf thrashed and kicked, trying to find a motion that would do itself grievous enough injury to atone for its disobedience. He was so tiny, though, that even Kuro could hold him fast despite his frantic struggles.

"Why are you trying to hurt yourself ?" Kuro asked.

"I has let a wizard see me," replied the elf through gritted teeth while bashing its head violently on Kuro's chest. "I is needing punishment."

Kuro had experience with this, clearly more than this tiny elf. Elves had to follow their orders, but most orders had loopholes if you thought about them in the right way. "I'm not a wizard. Didn't you say that?"

The elf stopped struggling, testing the idea.

"I'm a Kuro monster, right?" Kuro continued. "Were you told not to let Kuro monsters see you?"

The elf relaxed. "I does not have orders about the Kuro Monster," it said, sounding startled. "I is not needing punishment?"

A long uneasy pause passed where neither moved nor spoke. Eventually the elf asked uneasily "Is the Kuro monster letting me go soon?"

"Only if you tell me why my laundry isn't being done," Kuro said firmly.

The elf pondered for a while before speaking, weighing the possibility of telling Kuro something over waiting to starve to death together in the attic. Eventually, speaking won out. "Because you is the Kuro monster."

"What does that mean?" asked Kuro.

"You is not a wizard." explained the elf.

"So you've said." Kuro took a moment to make sense of the elf's meaning. "Do you mean it's because I'm half elf?"

"You is not any elf!" his captive snarled fiercely. "You is a wizard made thing. You is wizards stealing elf magic. You is a monster."

It seemed so obvious now that he had been told. The elves had found out what he was and they didn't like it. He couldn't blame them. He knew that he was created to try to mix elf and wizard magic. He was supposed to be a slave and a soldier for the dark wizards. He also knew that many elves suffered and some probably died in the experiments that created him. "I'm sorry." was all he could think to say.

He released the elf and slumped onto the dusty wooden slats of the attic floor. The elf did not apparate away immediately as Kuro expected, though. He just stood looking confused.

"Why is you letting me go?" he asked after a while.

"You answered my question," said Kuro glumly. "That's all I wanted. I'm sorry I scared you. Thank you for telling me."

The young elf's lip started to quiver and tears welled up in his eyes. "Why is you saying that?" it whined, choking back sobs.

"What's wrong?" asked Kuro worried that he'd done something to hurt the little creature. "What did I do?"

"The Kuro monster is thanking Bindal," the elf sobbed. "Bindal is never being thanked for anything before. Kuro monster is cruel to be kind."

Kuro remembered his life as a slave. He had never been thanked or rewarded or had the smallest mote of kindness paid to him. He had thought McGonagall would be a better master than that, but perhaps he was mistaken.

He didn't much know what to do, but he put a hand of the elf's shoulder in a manner he thought should be comforting and wiped tears away with his sleeve. "I'm sorry, Bindal" he said. "Is that your name? Bindal?"

The elf's eyes went wide with terror. "I has told a wizard my name," he whispered in horror.

Bindal began to beat his head with his fists, but Kuro grabbed his hands and said "Not a wizard, remember."

Bindal stopped hitting himself and a tiny smile broke across his droopy face, scrunching up the extra folds of skin. "The Kuro monster is not like the other elves say. They is saying you is an abomination and a dark and evil creature."

Kuro sighed dejectedly. "I was meant to be," he said. "I was supposed to be a great and powerful weapon. I turned out a bit rubbish though."

Bindal snorted a laugh. "You is a bit rubbish," he agreed, giggling between sniffles.

"Thanks," Kuro grumbled sarcastically.

"You is welcome," Bindal said Earnestly, clearly enjoying being thanked for things.

Kuro had an explanation but he was still stuck with a problem. He had a lot of dirty laundry and no way to get it done. "I don't suppose you want to teach me to do my laundry do you?" he said rhetorically.

Bindal's expression was a tumult of uncertainty. "You is wanting I..." he said trying to sort out what had been asked, "To teach the Kuro monster laundering?"

Kuro was surprised that Bindal was taking him seriously. Even more that he seemed interested. "If you were willing, yeah," he said a little pleadingly. "I'd really appreciate it. My clothes are starting to smell. We could trade. I could teach you something if you wanted."

"What could the Kuro monster teach Bindal?" Bindal sounded cautious, but curious.

Kuro thought about the few things he knew. "Well, I could teach you a bit about not following orders. I got pretty good at that before I was freed." Bindal looked very uncomfortable with that idea. "Or wizard magic. I'm bad at it, but I could show you some stuff if you wanted."

"The Kuro monster would show I how to do wizard magics?" Bindal asked, looking very skeptical.

"Yes." said Kuro steadfastly.

Bindal thought for a long time. He looked eager for the chance, but was wrestling with something inside. Kuro thought he knew what was happening, Bindal was trying to sort out what rules and orders he might be breaking to take Kuro up on his offer. "Okay," he said at last.

"Great!" said Kuro. "Thanks. When can we start."

The mention of time hit Bindal like a slap from Hagrid. "Oh no! I is late," he said, eyes growing wide with terror. "I must go."

"How will I find you?" asked Kuro, not wanting to lose his laundry trainer.

"I is a proper elf," said Bindal. "You is not finding I. I is finding you."

Bindal stepped back, closed his eyes, and with a crack like a splintering pencil, he was gone. Kuro was left in the dusty silence of a tower attic, cautiously hopeful about another meeting with the odd little elf.


	12. Chapter 12 - The Girl in the Toilet

Kuro spent much of the next two weeks wondering if Bindal would keep his word. He had extra time on his own to think about it, too.

As he had climbed through the trapdoor out of the attic Bindal had abandoned him in, he was met with several angry cries. Before he'd a chance to explain, he was hit with a collection of painful and debilitating curses that landed him in the hospital wing for the rest of that week.

When he'd recovered enough to be questioned, Kuro had been unable to adequately explain how he had gotten into the tower attic above the Gryffindor girls dormitory or what he had been doing there. Worried that telling the truth might land Bindal with much worse punishments than he, himself, would receive, Kuro made something up about exploring. His poor excuses earned him with two full days of detention.

He spent the week hoping that Bindal would appear. Kuro kept finding opportunities to be alone in secluded parts of the castle, but the little elf never returned. He kept waiting and his clothes just kept smelling worse and worse. It seemed as though he had been lied to, and his reward for keeping the secret was a full weekend of detention.

Not only did Kuro have to spend the entire next Saturday cleaning tapestries, but he had to do it on the one weekend where club activities were cancelled. Upper year students were all on an outing to Hogsmeade village, leaving only the first and second-years behind. Kuro could have been spending the day with his friends, but instead he was stuck listening to embroidered wizards complain about him beating the dust out of them.

Argus Filch, school caretaker and warden of detentions, reminded Kuro repeatedly that he wasn't allowed to use magic to speed up the job. This served to make the day not only unpleasant, but insulting. If he'd known how to clean things with magic he wouldn't have been in detention.

He hauled tapestries outside into the cold late autumn wind, one by one, and thumped them with a wicker carpet beater. When not engulfed in a cloud of dust he could see other students flying around on their brooms, playing catch with the giant squid in the lake, and holding hands in places they thought were secluded.

The others did come to visit him, if only briefly. Kuro was so coated in layers of dust that Edward started sneezing violently the moment they arrived. "How... achoo! are you... achoo! Doing... achoo!" he asked.

"Bored," replied Kuro. "Bored and filthy." To illustrate the point, he shook himself like a wet dog, releasing a billowing cloud of dust and evoking another round of sneezes from Edward.

With every expulsion, Edward changed shape, cycling through poor facsimiles of them and their classmates. He finished looking uncannily like Charlie.

"You still haven't told us how you really got up there," said Mary.

This wasn't her first attempt at getting the truth out of Kuro. She hadn't believed his story of exploring. He wanted to tell them the truth, but he worried for the safety of Bindal. As upset as he was at Bindal deceiving him, he couldn't stomach the idea of being responsible if Bindal was punished for being found. The memories of his own punishments from when he was a slave were enough to make him go to any length to protect another from the same fate. But that meant Kuro was stuck lying to his best friends about it.

To make matters worse, Charlie had believed him unquestioningly and was offended he went without her. "Seriously, you have to show me how you got up there," she said. "I've never been to Gryffindor House. And imagine the things we could do if we had a secret way in."

"I'm sorry Charlie," said Kuro. "I don't think I can get in the same way again."

Charlie slumped dejectedly. "Why'd you go exploring without me anyway?" she grumbled.

This was unfair. She was barely ever available to go exploring with. She was always in different classes or hanging out with her quidditch team. "You weren't around" snapped Kuro more sharply than he'd intended. "You ran off after class to see your quidditch friends."

Charlie looked hurt. Kuro told himself that he shouldn't care. She was the one that was always abandoning Kuro to fly her stupid broom around. "I should get back to work before Filch catches me chatting," he said moodily, turning away from and beating out a big cloud of dust.

The others left him, parting with awkward silence. He went back to work on his tapestry, a particularly gaudy one with a mad looking wizard attempting to teach trolls to dance ballet. "Oi!" cried the embroidered wizard. "Not so hard. You'll unseat my sequins."

Kuro hauled the fussy tapestry back up to school to hang it. He had it folded several times and balanced on his head in a vain attempt to keep it from dragging on the floor. He could barely see under it and nearly tripped a dozen times. The stitched wizard complained the whole way about being folded. "If I come out creased it'll be your head," he grumbled, though his voice was muffled by several layers of linen.

Kuro teetered up the many flights of steps to the empty seventh floor hallway where the tapestry hung. As he neared the final landing, he heard a door open and close, which made no sense as the hall had none. He worried that he'd gone the wrong way.

"See you next week" said a boy's voice sweetly.

"Wouldn't miss it," responded another. "Wait, did you hear that?"

The first boy cursed under his breath. "It's probably Filch. Split up!" he said urgently.

Just as Kuro reached the landing, one of the boys swept by him at speed, knocking him off balance and causing the tapestry to unroll down the stairs.

Kuro reeled, trying to keep his balance. A scraping noise behind him pulled his attention from the mystery duo. He spun to face the hallway in time to see a large door in what was normally a blank wall shrink and vanish.

He regained his feet, and dragged the tapestry up the stairs to rehang it. He was too distracted by the odd happenings to concentrate on it, though. The mysterious appearance of a door was too curious.

He investigated the blank wall where he was certain he had seen a door vanish. There was no sign of it. The wall was blank, the stonework unbroken. He thumped on it and kicked it and pointed his wand at it, trying to invent spells to make it appear. They did not work. He didn't even succeed in damaging the wall. He soaked it in acrid smelling mist, sprayed it with luminous swarms of midges, and accidentally flung himself quite hard against it, with no effect.

His experiments were interrupted by complaints from the tapestry. "You've hung me backwards," said the disgruntled wizard.

Kuro apologized and took down the tapestry. As he was hanging it again, he thought to ask the woven wizard if he knew anything about the door.

"There is a door, yes," said the wizard. "But I was sewn facing the wrong direction to see it. I gather it is only there sometimes. It's called the room of requirement or some such."

"Do you know what's inside, where it leads, or how to open it?" asked Kuro excitedly.

"I'm not entirely certain," said the little wizard in his sequined robes. "The stitching around my ear was quite clumsy and I haven't very good hearing. The few students that know about speak about it in whispers for some reason."

Kuro was so invested in the conversation with the tapestry that he didn't hear the footsteps approaching. "What do you think you're doing?" an adult voice from behind startled Kuro. He jumped high enough to lodge himself in the rafters. Kuro looked down to see Potter staring back at him with a strange mix of annoyance and relief.

"I'm doing my detention," defended Kuro angrily. "What are you doing here?"

"I am a teacher, I go where I like." said Potter arrogantly. "Why are you in this hallway? You shouldn't be up here."

"I was hanging a tapestry, like I was told," Kuro practically spat the words at Potter. "Why are you in this hallway? You shouldn't even be in the school. It's the weekend, shouldn't you be at home?"

Potter glared silently at Kuro for a while. "Get down from there," he said, not being able to think of any other way to scold Kuro.

Kuro dropped from the ceiling, landing lightly in front of Potter, still glaring defiantly at him. "Are you taking me prisoner, or can I get back to work? I don't want Filch to give me another detention while I'm in detention."

"Mr. Filch," Potter corrected sternly before waving him off.

Kuro spent the rest of his day of chores in a daze, trying to imagine explanations for the odd things on the seventh floor. Where had the door come from and where had it gone, and what was Potter doing up there? He wanted to tell Charlie and hear her mad theories about what might be up there, but he wasn't sure she would want to talk to him after he'd been so cross with her earlier.

His next day was equally unpleasant. He was sent to clean up a water spill in a girl's toilet. Unfortunately, the cause of the spill was still there and was so upset by Kuro's arrival, that she overflowed several other toilets.

She was a ghost by the name of Myrtle. She had been a student at Hogwarts when she died and had haunted the toilet ever since. She was an unpleasant ghost, constantly bemoaning her fate and whining about loneliness while simultaneously screaming about the intrusion of anyone entering her washroom.

"Intruder!" she wailed at him over and over. "Come to make fun of old Myrtle? Come to laugh at the ghost?"

"No," said Kuro dully. "I've come to mop the floor."

"Oh of course," she cried. "Ignore poor Moaning Myrtle. Just treat her like a bit of bad plumbing. No need to keep me company. I'm just a ghost. I don't have feelings." She wailed painfully and dove into a toilet, causing it to overflow.

Kuro sighed and started mopping, now nearly ankle-deep in water. He dumped bucket after bucket down the drain, but made no progress as Myrtle ensured he would always have more work to do.

"Nobody cares about old, dead Myrtle," she sobbed. "Nobody comes to talk to her. Nobody wants to be friends with dumb, ugly, dead Myrtle."

"Oh shove off," snapped Kuro. "Nobody likes me much either, but you don't see me exploding toilets."

"You have friends," Myrtle wailed. "I've seen you with them."

"Yeah, well they're off having fun with their other friends while I'm here cleaning up your mess." He pointed the handle of the mop at her for emphasis. "So could you stop your winging for just a little while and let me work?" Kuro was nearly shouting at the sobbing ghost.

"You're so mean!" she shrieked and dove back into a toilet, bringing forth yet another deluge of water.

Kuro felt sick. He was so upset about everything that he was yelling at a depressed ghost. "I'm sorry," he said to the now empty room. "I just thought this year would be different, but it's not. Everything's gone wrong again. I'm still terrible at school, I never see my friends, and my clothes are really starting to stink." He paused to consider his misery before adding. "And now my shoes are wet."

He felt the need to lay down and have a proper cry, but he wasn't going to lie in the flooded floor. So he just stood, defeated and sulking.

The top of Moaning Myrtle's head poked up through the floor. "So are mine," said Myrtle sadly.

The strangeness of her statement distracted Kuro from his gloom for a moment. "How..." Kuro started to ask. He couldn't see how a ghost could have wet shoes. Water went right through her. "I'm sorry to hear that," he said instead,

She started to drift around the room sulkily. "Olive Hornby was teasing me about my glasses," she said. "So I ran to the toilet to cry. The floor was all wet like this, like a pipe had burst. That's when I died. My shoes never dried." She sniffed and look sullenly at her shoes. "I've been wearing the same wet shoes for almost seventy years."

"That's awful," said Kuro. "Isn't there a ghost blow dryer or something you can use."

"No, nothing," she said between tragic sniffles. "A ghost is stuck just as they died. I was sad and soggy, so I will be forever." She started sobbing.

Kuro felt the need to comfort her, but didn't know how. "Is... is there anything I can do for you?"

"Noooo," she wailed. "But it's kind of you to ask. It's been ever so long since anyone even pretended to care."

A growing commotion outside the washroom interrupted their conversation. "What's going on?" asked Kuro.

Moaning Myrtle recovered herself quickly. The promise of gossip seemed to invigorate her. She returned a few moments later. "Someone's gone missing. Perhaps they've died." she said it a little more hopefully than Kuro was entirely comfortable with.

"Who?" asked Kuro with a mix of curiosity and trepidation.

"Some Gryffindor girl," she said. "She could be being murdered right now. I might tidy up the stall next to mine in case she comes to stay afterwards."

They were interrupted by a rasping cough. Mr. Filch shoved open the washroom door and wheezed, "You're lucky, boy. You get a break. Everyone's to go to the great hall. The headmistress has an announcement."

Kuro said his goodbyes to Myrtle and headed out the door. Before he made it through to the hallway, Filch grabbed him by the collar and hauled him back into the flooded washroom. He glared at Kuro with his sunken, crooked eyes. "It's worse than when you started," he snarled.

"I'm not a plumber," replied Kuro, trying not to sound too sarcastic. "The toilets keep overflowing."

Filch glared with impotent menace at Moaning Myrtle who looked away and whistled innocently. Her whistle was an odd sort of sound. She didn't have real lips or breath to use, yet somehow she produced a sound like a winter wind whipping through a crack in a doorway.

"I'll be speaking to the headmistress about you girl," snarled Fich. He then rounded on Kuro. "You be back here right after. You'll not eat or sleep until this room bone dry."

Kuro squelched down the hallway in his soaking wet shoes to the great hall. He started towards his usual seat, but hesitated when he saw the others. He didn't know if they'd still be upset with him.

"Get out of the way, stray" said an haughty voice behind him. "Ugh, he smells like a wet dog."

Evelyn and her gang pushed passed Kuro roughly. When he regained his footing, he saw something that made his heart leap. Mary, Edward and Charlie were all out of their seats and glaring at Evelyn and her posse. They looked ready to fight.

The sight of his friends angry on his defense was overwhelming. He felt guilty for ever doubting them or being cross. Kuro took his seat and smiled weakly at them. "Hey," was all hey could think to say.

"How's it going?" asked Mary a little cautiously.

"Soggy," replied Kuro. "Filch has me mopping a flooded washroom." There was a small awkward pause before words came tumbling out of Kuro's mouth. "Look, I'm sorry I can't tell you what really happened last week. Someone else could get in a whole lot of trouble. Worse trouble than me," he said in a hushed voice.

"Who?" demanded Charlie loudly, missing the idea that it was meant to be a secret conversation.

"I can't tell, you," said Kuro a little exasperated. "Really, I want to. But I can't."

"We understand," said Mary. Charlie did not appear to agree, but she kept quiet. Her face was scrunched up in annoyance. Her arms were crossed and she was pointedly not looking at Kuro.

Kuro was assembling a heartfelt plea for forgiveness when Charlie's carefully constructed composure of crossness shattered without warning. She slammed her hands on the table and rounded on Kuro.

Kuro nearly fell off the bench in surprise. He prepared himself to be berated, but when he dared to look her in the face, she was exuberant. "You've got a girlfriend!" she proclaimed loudly enough for most of the table to hear.

"What?" said Kuro, completely baffled.

"You've got a Gryffindor girlfriend and she let you into their dorm," she spoke with absolute certainty, delighted with her clever revelation.

Kuro readied himself to argue, but he was cut off by McGonagall tapping her wand on a lectern. The gentle tap echoed like thunder around the great hall, effectively quieting the noisy crowd. She looked weary. Her stern features were softened by worry and lack of sleep. "I have some troubling news with all of you," she began. "And I must impress upon all of you the urgency and gravity of the situation."

Charlie leaned in uncomfortably close to Kuro. "Is it Sara Madahvi? " she whispered. "She's got a really nice smile. Good at charms, too."

Kuro shook his head and tried to communicate that she was headed in entirely the wrong direction.

McGonagall continued to speak, her voice heavy with concern. "A student has gone missing," she waited a moment for the shocked rumblings in the audience to settle.

Charlie took the opportunity to continue her interrogation of Kuro. "Is it Luticia Wiffledon? I bet it's Luticia. I can see why you'd like her, looks really good in her quidditch uniform."

She waited for Kuro's reaction. He rolled his eyes and mouthed no as forcefully as he could.

"Antimonie Travers did not return from Hogsmeade yesterday evening," announced Professor McGonagall briefly saving Kuro from Charlie's assault. "She was last seen leaving the Three Broomsticks inn. If anyone knows anything, if you saw anything unusual yesterday, I implore you to share it with your head of house. Any detail, no matter how small, could be valuable in bringing Antimonie back safely."

"Or do you have a boyfriend?" said Charlie suddenly. "Is that why you're keeping it secret? I completely understand if that's it. But I, for one, am very happy you found someone," she said, hand-on-heart. "Is it Stephen Burbage? He does seem nice and you're at that orphanage together. I bet you have a lot in common."

Kuro was about to protest, but Meredith hushed them. All he could do was slump and look at her like she'd gone mad and hope she'd let the whole thing drop.

"I know you have many questions," continued McGonagall. "I will try to address some of them. Yes, the aurors and the ministry have been alerted. They have been actively searching since last night along with our staff. No, this is not related to the chamber of secrets. Professor Potter was kind enough to confirm that for us. Many of her things are missing from her room. It appears that she may have left of her own accord. Regardless, we are taking precautions in case this was an abduction:"

"Is it Lesedi?" Charlie whispered eagerly.

"No." replied Kuro as quietly as he could.

"Hogsmeade visits are cancelled until further notice," announced the Headmistress to loud protests.

"Wednesday Griffith?"

"I don't have a girlfriend," responded Kuro as emphatically as he could.

"And no student is to approach within one hundred meters of the Centaur Forest," proclaimed McGonagall "A magical barrier shall be erected to ensure none stray too close by accident."

"Wendell?" posited Charlie.

"I do not have a boyfriend, either" said Kuro.

"It would be cool with me if you did," said Charlie.

"But I don't," reiterated Kuro.

"Thank you all for your attention," concluded McGonagall. "Your heads of house are available should you have any questions or information you feel you need to pass. Good day."

McGonagall swept from the podium and the hall burst into a deafening din of speculation and worry. Charlie, though, would not be deterred by something so trivial as a disappearing student. She stuck close to Kuro as they left the hall. "Trellis Morgan," she said firmly, no longer needing to whisper.

Kuro pointedly ignored her which did nothing to dissuade her guessing.

"Abigail Windholm?"

"Who?" Kuro replied, having never even heard the name.

"Felicity Mcallister-Smith?"

"How do you remember all these names?"

"Figure it out yet?" asked Edward catching up to them in the corridor with Mary close behind.

"There is nothing to figure out." shouted Kuro, flinging his arms in the air. "I do not have a girlfriend." He paused between each word for emphasis, and quickly added "Or a boyfriend!" before Charlie could circle back to her old ideas. "If I did, I would tell you. I swear."

"What's this I hear about Kuro having a girlfriend?" interrupted Shaun Cassidy who approached quickly from behind with Oliver, blocking off Kuro's escape. "You're keeping the juicy details from us, Kuro?"

Kuro tugged at his hair in frustration.

"He won't tell us who they are," complained Charlie. "All we know is they're a Gryffindor."

Shaun contemplated for a moment. "Well she's got to be someone he doesn't think we'd approve, then," he said wisely. "Can't think of any Gryffindors like that, though. Well, I mean except..."

Shaun trailed off as Edward and Charlie clued in to the same idea. Charlie squealed with a strange combination of delight and jealousy, and Edward started to growl with disgust. "Victoire Weasley," they said together.

Kuro started to wave his hands dismissively. He was about to put that ridiculous idea to rest, but the words couldn't get past an unexpected blockage. Filch grabbed him by the collar and started dragging Kuro down the hall towards the washroom to finish his detention. "Thought I'd forgotten about you, eh?" he snarled.

Kuro stared hopelessly back at his friends desperately wanting to tell them they were terribly mistaken, but it was far too late. They were ignoring him and were already in heated discussion about his and Victoire's imagined romance.

Filch chucked Kuro back into the flooded washroom and shoved the mop into his hands. "Clean and dry before you eat or sleep tonight. Get to it."

Kuro returned to mopping. He was grateful, at least, that he was free of the prying of his friends. However, he was worried what he might be getting up to in fictional relationship Charlie was no doubt constructing for him. With a lot of luck the whole thing would have blown over by the time he was done his detention.

Myrtle drifted up through the floor, right where he was cleaning. Kuro shouted and jumped back then apologized profusely for having shoved a mop through her face.

She didn't seem to mind, though. She wore an odd expression. It wasn't at all sorrowful or angry. She looked maliciously coy. "What's this I hear about you going out with Victoire Weasley?"


	13. Chapter 13 - Laundry Day

It only took a week of unrelenting interrogation by Charlie to convince her that Kuro was not actually going out with anyone.

"So you're really not dating Victoire?" Charlie said during patronus practice in Defense against the Dark Arts class.

Potter had gotten even more demanding in his classes since Antimonie Travers vanished.

Most of the other teachers assumed that Antimonie had run away. She wasn't a popular girl and she took most of her stuff with her. There were still searches ongoing, but wherever she had gone, she wasn't using magic, or they would have been able to follow the trace to her.

Potter, though, was treating it as a kidnapping. It seemed to Kuro that he was either very paranoid, or was using it to scare students into working harder. His classes felt more like military drills and the refrain of "Constant vigilance!" rang out several times per lecture.

Charlie was infuriatingly good at the defensive spells that they were being taught. She could conjure her magnificent unicorn patronus so casually now that she spent most of practice distracting Kuro. "Come on, you can tell me. I won't tell."

"For the millionth time, no." Kuro tried to look as assertively as possible, though he couldn't keep his voice from cracking with frustration.

Charlie sighed and her gleaming silver unicorn sputtered out in her disappointment. "Probably for the best," she said as she casually recast the spell, "Ed seemed miffed at the idea. Expecto patronum!"

Kuro, of course, had never managed to conjure anything more than a silvery sputter. He had given up seriously trying. Being told to think of something happy just reminded him of all his worst memories. It was an exercise in misery which he could happily avoid by feigning incompetence. "Expecto Patronum," he said emphatically though not even a spark shot from his wand.

It normally did at least something, a pathetic puff of silver or a dribble of glowing mist. He looked more closely at his wand and found that it was Sprig. The bowtruckle had taken to 'rescuing' Kuro's wand and taking its place in his pocket. Sprig had even shed his bark to look more like his wand and Kuro frequently wasted large portions of class trying to cast spells holding the bowtruckle. He put Sprig back in his bag, gave it some food to keep it busy, and started rummaging through the usual hiding spots for his actual wand.

Edward had managed to conjure his patronus for the first time a week back. It was a wolf, surprising nobody. "Well done, Teddy," said Potter, applauding his success. "Both your mother and father had a wolf patronus. It was your father that taught me to cast my patronus back in my school days"

Edward was proud but a bit disappointed. "I wish it had been something cool like Charlie's" he said to Kuro privately.

That sentiment was shared by almost everyone. No matter how majestic or personally meaningful their patronus might be, it was hard to compare to a glittering, galloping unicorn. Mary was exceptionally troubled by it. She could reliably put up a misty patronus shield, but couldn't make it take shape. She had taken to separating herself from Charlie during the class and trying to ignore her parading unicorn.

Kuro was starting to worry about Mary, in general. Every time Charlie talked about the creatures on her farm, or Edward relayed stories of the mad adventures of his relatives, Mary got really sulky. The others didn't seem to notice, they were too busy doing fun things with their new club friends. Kuro wanted to do something, but every time he had a chance to talk to Mary alone, he couldn't think of anything to say.

She was spending less and less time with them and more and more with her club. Kuro also kept finding her hiding in a dark corner of the common room pouring over transfiguration books, even when the other three of them were studying together.

Today, she was dedicatedly ignoring the Charlie's cantering conjuration. She had moved to a far corner of the class, away from conversation and was casting the patronus charm again and again. Each time producing a perfect, gleaming shield of silver mist, but never the animal that seemed so important for her to create.

The bell rang and everyone else evacuated to their next class. Kuro was in no rush, though. He didn't have another class after this one so he took his time collecting his books. He watched Mary leave separately from Charlie and Edward with a sinking heart.

The door swung closed behind the last of his classmates and a crack like a branch being snapped right beside him made him jump nearly out of his skin. Bindal was there, standing on a desk and looking impatient. "Now is a good time for the Kuro monster to learn washing?" he asked.

"Where have you been?" demanded Kuro, "it's been weeks! My clothes are all so filthy nobody wants to sit beside me anymore. My bath towel doesn't even bend anymore."

Bindal's face went through several contortions before he spoke. Kuro recognized the mental gymnastics he was doing, but had never seen it from the other side. He was trying to find an answer that didn't contradict his orders. "I has been busy." he said at last.

"I thought you'd lied to me to get away." Said Kuro.

Bindal looked aghast. "I is a proper elf. I is never breaking my word."

"Are you still going to teach me to clean clothes?"

Bindal's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Is the Kuro monster showing Bindal how to do wizard magic? Is the Kuro monster showing Bindal how to use a... not-a-wizard wand."

"Absolutely," said Kuro. "I'd be happy to."

Bindal nodded but still looked wary. "Where is we doing the laundry then?" he asked.

Kuro hadn't thought of that. He supposed they needed a place where nobody went. There were the dungeons, but Slytherins wandered those halls and sometimes students would use them for spell practice and private rendezvous. There was only one spot he knew of in the castle that nobody ever went unless forced. "Do you have any rules about ghosts?" Kuro asked.

"Myrtle?" Kuro said, cautiously poking his head into the washroom a few minutes later. "Myrtle are you here? Can I come in?"

"No, go away" she cried.

Kuro apologized and closed the door. It had been a good idea, he thought.

He was about to walk away when her ghostly head shot through the door right in front of his face. Kuro nearly jumped out a window in surprise. "Did you just ask to come in?" she asked, tears streaming down her face.

"Yes," squeaked Kuro, still rattled from the shock of her appearance. "Sorry."

"Nobody ever asks to come in," she cried. "Why are you being nice to me? What do you want."

"Can you keep a secret?" asked Kuro in a hushed voice as he checked that there were no eavesdroppers in the hallway.

Myrtle's eyes lit up, her tears forgotten. "Oh yes," she said eagerly. "I keep many secrets. The things I wouldn't tell you about this school are incredible."

Kuro tilted his head toward some oncoming students. "Can I come in for a moment, then?"

Myrtle allowed him entry and waited impatiently for her new secret to keep.

"There's someone that isn't really supposed to be hanging out with wizards, but we want to do some magic together." Kuro said.

Myrtle smirked knowingly. "It's your girlfriend, isn't it? Who is she? I've heard lots of people talking about it. It's that Weasley girl, isn't it. You have to be careful with Weasley girls, they can be very dangerous."

"No," said Kuro and rolled his eyes in frustration. "He's an elf. He's not supposed to be doing wizard magic, and I think he's shirking work to do it. So we have to keep it secret. We were hoping to do it in here, if that's okay with you."

Myrtle nodded and gestured like she was zipping her lips sealed and locking them shut.

"Great, thanks Myrtle, you're the best." Kuro said.

Something about thanking her made her well up with tears and retreat to the stall to sob in private about how nobody was ever polite to her. Kuro looked around for his elven partner, but didn't know how to tell him that the coast was clear. "Bindal?" he said uncertainly.

Bindle snapped into existence on a sink in front of Kuro. Kuro's heart complained loudly that it had weathered too many surprises recently and threatened to fail if it continued. Kuro clutched his chest and steadied himself. "Myrtle says we can use her washroom."

Bindal popped around the room, apparating to windows, drains, vents and stalls looking for hiding wizards. "Okay," he said with apprehension as he locked the door with a twitch of a finger. "This is being safe enough."

"Great!" Kuro clapped. "Let's get started."

Bindal nodded. "I is needing some laundry to do."

Kuro pulled out several robes and his pajamas from his bag and handed them over.

Bindle turned up his nose at them. "They is very dirty," he said.

This was particularly insulting since Bindal wore only a tattered and filthy tea-towel, but Kuro kept quiet. He wasn't going to waste this chance.

With a snap of his fingers a large wash basin appeared in front of Bindal and started to fill with water. He then pulled a box of washing detergent from out of thin air and poured in a carefully measured amount of powder before it vanished again. He soaked a robe in the basin and started rubbing it against a washboard that appeared with a clap of the elf's over-sized hands. "The robes is dark colors so the Kuro monster must be remembering to use cold water and no bleach," Bindal started to explain very seriously.

Kuro stared back in bemused wonder before bursting into laughter.

"Why is you laughing at me?" demanded Bindal, sounding deeply hurt and angry.

"I'm sorry," Kuro managed to say as he struggled to suppress his laughter. "But where did the tub and the soap and the water come from? How did you make a washboard appear? The scrubbing bit is the only part I know how to do."

"Can the Kuro monster not make water?" Bindal said as if it were as easy as breathing. "You is not very good at magic is you?"

Kuro slumped. "No. I'm not," he said.

"So you is needing me to teach you the easiest elf magics?"

"And I'll teach you the easiest wizard magics." Kuro said, producing his wand. "Deal?"

Bindal regarded Kuro's wand with fear and wonder. He reached towards it but hesitated. "You is not an elf. Maybe you cannot be doing elf magic."

Kuro nodded. Bindal wasn't wrong. "You're not a wizard." Kuro presented the wand handle first to Bindal. "Maybe you can't do wizard magic."

Bindal scowled as if the idea of Kuro being able to do something he couldn't was deeply offensive. He delicately grasped the knotty twig of a wand and held it up. He looked like he was waiting for it to explode, or for horrible punishment to be dealt. "What is I doing next?"

"Well if you're anything like me," said Kuro, "You have to learn to wave it around gently without anything exploding."

"I is nothing like the Kuro monster," Bindal said emphatically, slashing the wand through the air. The resulting explosion knocked them both off their feet.

Kuro found his feet quickly as a horrid choking sound like a cat gagging on a hairball filled the washroom. He worried that Bindal had injured himself, or that some horrible monster had come up through the pipes. As he spun to find the source of the noise, he saw Myrtle. She was tumbling over and over in the air clutching her stomach. He face was contorted horridly and she looked like she was about to die again.

"Myrtle!" Kuro gasped and ran to her. He tried to hold her and ask what he could do, but she was less than air. All he could do was look on in horror.

She managed to choke out some words between convulsions. "That. Was. The. Funniest. Thing. I've. Ever. Seen."

She was laughing. It had been so long since she'd done it that she'd forgotten how it worked. It was painful to listen to, but it was strangely infectious. Kuro started to giggle along with her while Bindal looked on in utter confusion.

Their laughter was interrupted by a banging on the washroom door. Filch's rasping shout was barely audible through the heavy wooden door. "Myrtle! What are you doing in there? If you're making a mess again I'll go straight to the Headmistress, I swear."

Myrtle winked at Kuro and began wailing with anguish. "Can't I suffer in peace? I've already died, isn't that enough? No! I have to endure the constant invasions of crusty old men in my place of rest." She broke down into loud, pitiful sobs.

Kuro couldn't hear Filch over the wailing, but he peeked through the keyhole to see him looking flustered and annoyed. Filch looked up and down the hall to make sure nobody else was listening. Then he hobbled off, pretending nothing had happened.

"Thanks," said Kuro. "That was great!"

"Anytime," sobbed Myrtle.

"Are you still here Bindal?" Kuro asked, reclaiming his wand which lay abandoned on the floor.

Bindals eyes, which looked permanently worried due to his extra folds of skin, poked up cautiously above a toilet stall door. "Has he gone?"

"Yep. Wanna try the wand again."

Bindal stared at it like a stick of dynamite. Kuro could see the determination growing in his eyes, though. With a crack, Bindal was back beside Kuro taking the wand from him. "How is it done?"

Kuro spent much of the next hour offering Bindal bits of advice on wand use while he scrubbed his own laundry. "Remember, wizards are lazy. Just let the words and wand do the work," he said while working some dragon dung fertilizer out of a pair of trousers. "You can't force it," he added after the wand threw Bindal across the room for the third time. "Less feeling, more thinking. Magic happens in the head."

Bindal was broadly upset by most of it. He explained that it was entirely backwards and that wizards were doing magic all wrong. "How is you knowing what magic is happening if you isn't feeling it?" he asked while staring at the wand accusingly. "Magics is all about feeling."

Myrtle offered her own thoughts as well. "Hold it more like a pen and less like a club, but I don't know why you'd listen to me. I'm just a stupid ghost."

It wasn't quite what Kuro had hoped for, but he was enjoying it nonetheless. By the end of an hour he had most of his clothes hanging up to dry over various stalls and Bindal could reliably get the wand to do nothing. He even managed to get some sparks to appear on command once.

"It's almost dinner, time. We should probably finish up." said Kuro, a little sad to end the afternoon. "Thanks for the soapy water Bindal."

Bindal was again taken aback by the civility. "You is... welcome," he said uncertainly.

"Do you want to do this again sometime?" Kuro asked. He was a little surprised to hear himself say it. It was an odd group, but it felt like he had his own club now. "I could teach you some more spells, maybe you could show me some elf magic?"

"Does I... want?" Bindal took a long time to process that idea. He looked from the crooked little wand in his hand to Kuro, to Myrtle, and back. "Yes." he said cautiously.

"Would you mind if we came back here, Myrtle?"

"I don't know why you'd want to," she sobbed. "I'm terrible company."

"But if we did want to, would you mind?"

"No, I suppose not." She blew her nose on her sleeve. "I'll not be surprised when you don't come back, though. Nobody ever does."

"Next week then? Same time work for you Bindal?"

Bindal handed Kuro back his wand. "I is here when I is here," he said perplexingly and vanished with a crack.


	14. Chapter 14 - Group Work

Bindal returned rather earlier than expected. Kuro was laying in his bed on a Saturday, alone in the room as everyone else had left for their club activities. His transfiguration book lay beside him open to a page about turning amphibians into simple household objects. He had told himself that he would study it and practice until he could at least make a newt into a spoon, but he barely lasted twenty minutes before giving up. He had switched over to his history of magic text instead.

It wasn't a likely choice. The book was almost as dull as Professor Binns and few students opened it any more than was absolutely necessary. However, it was the only book that said anything about elves. Kuro had become ravenously curious about elf magic. As he scoured the pages he found hints about it here and there. Elves didn't have spells like wizards. Elves were said to cast spells by instinct. They didn't need wands or words, but it also meant they couldn't write it down. The book claimed that "The superior ability to record and transfer magical knowledge was the ultimate reason for the natural ascension of wizards to be the governors of the magical world."

Kuro had to read between the lines a lot to figure out what elf magic actually looked like. From what he could tell, they were very good at making things appear and disappear and moving things around. They also tamed dragons. One story talked about brave wizards defeating the great silver dragon of the elf king. That was before elves were enslaved by wizards.

Given how bad he was at transfiguration, Kuro wondered how much elf he actually had in him. He couldn't conjure a pebble, let alone a mountain as was described in one story.

He also discovered that there were other species with their own magic. Goblins were quite good at making enchanted objects, and refused to share their secrets with wizards. Centaurs couldn't cast anything like spells, but they could feel the movement of magic and were good at divination. Cheshire cats, after which the county in England was named, were experts at invisibility and illusion magic. Some merpeople could cast spells like a wizard, but only underwater, and Giants didn't so much do magic, but were almost immune to it.

Kuro wondered why they didn't learn more about the other kinds of magic in class. Even what little was in the text book wasn't being covered by Binns. 

Kuro was just reaching an account of how goblins had first harvested adamantine pangolin scales to protect themselves from wizard spells when a loud crack made him jump and a weight on his chest prevented him from doing so.

"Bindal!" Kuro wheezed at the elf standing on his chest. "You surprised me."

"You is very easy to surprise," said the little elf. "Is you ready for magic?"

"Definitely," said Kuro, though his heart was still pounding from Bindal's entrance. He grabbed his satchel as Bindal hopped off his chest.

Bindal offered his hand to Kuro. Though it looked oversized on Bindal's tiny frame, it was small in Kuro's grasp. Bindal said "Follow," and vanished with a snap.

A moment later he was back in front of Kuro looking cross. "I is saying follow. Why is you not following?"

"I don't know how," said Kuro baffled. "Don't I just hold on and you pull me with you like last time?"

"No, I is never pulling. You is following," explained Bindal impatiently. He stuck out his hand again and waited for Kuro to take it.

Kuro tried to remember what was different when he had first caught Bindal. He recalled the desperate feeling he had that he couldn't let the elf get away. He tried to focus on that thought as he grasped the little elf hand once more.

Bindal vanished, pulled into a tiny point of nothing and Kuro felt himself being tugged along with him. It wasn't a gentle feeling like before. He felt stretched out like an elastic band almost to snapping. The blackness between spaces was oppressive and suffocating. He felt the need to gasp for air but had no lungs to breath. As light and substance snapped back into place it felt as though he had gone through a ringer. He filled his lungs and nearly emptied his stomach on the washroom floor.

"You is better last time," said Bindal unsympathetically. "You is almost leaving parts of you behind."

"I was more focused last time, I think," said Kuro as his eyes found the same direction to point in again.

"Is not focussing what matters. Focusing is head thinking. Wizard magic is head thinking. Elf magic is heart knowing." Bindal was pointing to his chest to emphasize the point..

"I thought apparating was wizard magic," said Kuro as he found his feet and waved to Myrtle who immediately began sobbing at the show of politeness.

Bindal looked deeply insulted. "Apparating is old elf magic. Is stolen by wizards." His expression lightened as he continued, though. "But they is bad at it. Is always splinching and going wrong places. Is very funny."

"Splinching?"

"Bad apparating" said Bindal. "Wizard word. Elves is not needing it. Elves is not leaving our bits behind."

Together they spent much of the day trying to trade spells with limited success. Bindal fought to make the wand do anything he asked it to and Kuro struggled to understand Bindal's cryptic instructions for how "knowing a thing is makes it be unless it cannot ever going to be then it isn't." But he tried. Myrtle, for her part, was glad as she could be for the company and kept busy by scaring bugs towards Sprig for it to eat.

They parted again before they might be missed with the promise of many returns.

Kuro quickly started to look forward to his clandestine meetings with Bindal and Myrtle more than anything else. His regular friends were getting less fun. Charlie talked endlessly about her upcoming quidditch matches, which she wouldn't even likely get to play in unless someone got injured.

Edward, whenever he could get a word in, would talk about spells and strategies for dueling and kept trying to convince Kuro to practice with him. Kuro, glad for any company, agreed, but the practices were little more than hours of searching for his wand under furniture in the common room after being repeatedly disarmed. He was, however getting a lot of practice casting shield charms.

Mary was becoming more and more distant. She rarely studied with them anymore and spent all her time working to become an animagus. Kuro couldn't understand why she cared so much about it, and she wouldn't explain it. All Kuro could do was try to be encouraging and hope she came back when she had figured it out.

Classes continued to defeat him. He didn't have anyone like Ms. Crawley this year, and he hadn't recognized how much Mary helped him until she wasn't around. He was working hard to figure things out on his own but felt adrift.

Arithmancy provided him with a weekly dose of complete confusion. They had recently moved from counting various varieties of infinity to working on improbability calculations. At least once a class someone would make an unfortunate miscalculation and something terribly unlikely would happen, like everyone's shoes moving seventeen centimeters to the left, or a desk becoming a pot of petunias.

Potions was becoming a nightmare. Kuro was quite good at brewing, but Professor Slughorn was far more interest in Kuro than he was comfortable with. He had dropped all pretense and was openly experimenting on Kuro. He used Kuro to demonstrate the effects of any potion that wouldn't kill him. Every time Slughorn watched with intense curiosity as the potion took effect, peering at him conspicuously through a collection of multicolored lenses, hoping to learn the properties of the curious creature before him. Kuro left class variously taller, shorter, glowing brightly, growing leaves, and a rainbow of colours. He was rendered weightless one day and Charlie had to pull him to their next class on a tether like a balloon.

Kuro had only made slight progress in his battles against transfiguration. He had proudly transformed a matchstick into a sewing needle only two weeks behind the next worst student. Now, while the rest of the class was turning hedgehogs into hairbrushes and back, he was still trying to turn beetles into buttons.

Azalea and Victoire's feud only deepened over the term. They competed constantly to be the first to answer questions, to get the top grades, and to be generally insufferable. Kuro had the pleasure of ignoring it for the first months of the year, but as snow started to fall, group work began. Kuro was unsurprised to find himself without a team. What he did not expect was Azalea and Victoire being the other stragglers. It seemed that nobody else wanted to be near the dueling know-it-alls.

Professor McGonagall, out of either ignorance or cruelty Kuro didn't know, forced the three into a group despite their vigorous protests.

Neither girl were fond of Kuro, but they hated each other. The periods spent researching the transformation of base metals into houseplants were spent in violent silence. The two girls fought over texts to read through indignant glares, leaving Kuro to try to sift something useful out of their cast-offs. They competed to write the most and best notes, leaving Kuro to compile them into something cogent. On the rare occasion they did speak, they did so only through Kuro, demanding that he repeat whatever they said to the other so they never had to speak to each other directly.

After three classes of this, a dam broke.

"Kuro, tell Weasley that her calculations for titanium tulips are wrong," whispered Azalea disdainfully.

Kuro rolled his eyes and passed on the message. "Azalea believes that there might be a mistake in the tulip formula."

"Well you can tell Avery that she's wrong and she should worry more about her magnesium marigolds," hissed Victoire.

Kuro waited for Azalea to respond but she sat, silently fuming, while she waited for Kuro to relay the message. He sighed in exasperation. "Victoire is confident in her work and would like it if you could focus on your own."

"Well tell Weasley that she's a primped up princess who couldn't make a platinum petunia to save her life."

Kuro had to think for a while to come up with a version of that he was willing to say. Victoire in the meantime looked ready to burst. "Azalea disagrees," he said at last.

"Tell Avery she's nothing but a filthy snake and should slither down a hole and die."

There was painful pause before Kuro managed to say a quiet, and horrified "No."

Azalea was not waiting for Kuro anymore. "Well tell Weasley that she's a simpering sniveling squib."

Azalea's outburst was loud enough to draw the attention of the librarian. Madam Pince descended like a vulture to hush the students.

Quieted but not calmed, the two girls stared daggers at each other and their hands drifted towards their wands. Kuro was finally fed up. "Can't you just try to work together?" he pleaded.

This, evidently, was not the proper thing to say at all. They turned their ferocious attention to Kuro and he could feel the rage crackling between them.

"Weasley's uncle put my dad in Azkaban! It's their fault my mother died. It's their fault I'm an orphan" seethed Azalea.

"You're one to talk. Your father murdered my uncle, Fred. My uncles are heroes. You family are all Death Eaters," raged Victoire.

They all went for their wands.

"Expeliarmus!" shouted Victoire and a jet of scarlet shot from her wand.

"Stupefy!" shouted Azalea, hurling a vibrant red orb at Victoire .

"Protego!" squeaked Kuro.

The girl's spells bounced off of the shimmering barrier Kuro had erected, ricocheting into shelves and sending books flying. Kuro's heart thumped with relief that his shield charm had worked. Perhaps his hours as Edward's duelling dummy weren't a complete waste. He held up the charm as a rippling wall between the feuding Pair. They looked ready to continue their duel the moment Kuro lost focus, though.

He did lose focus rather sooner than he'd hoped. Professor McGonagall appeared at his side as if from nowhere. "Avery, Weasley, detention!" she said sharply.

Kuro jumped in surprise, landing catlike on one of the tables. As he found his bearings he could see the eyes of the rest of the class peeking around shelves to spy the scolding.

"I am extremely disappointed," continued McGonagall, expressing a look far fiercer and angrier than either of the girls had mustered. "I expect a great deal more from the both of you. Twenty points from both of your houses and if I hear of you pointing your wands at each other again, I will be strongly considering expulsion."

The bell rang, ending the period and the stand off. The two girls grabbed their bags and slunk off in separate directions, leaving Kuro with a pile of books and notes to clean up. He sighed dejectedly and moved to start tidying, but stopped to look quizzically at Professor McGonagall who hadn't moved.

"I believe you want to ask me some questions," she said impatiently.

Kuro hadn't realized it until she suggested it, but he did have several burning curiosities. "I... um... can I change groups?" he asked.

"No," said McGonagall with finality. "And that is the least interesting question you could ask." She waved her wand and the books on his table started re-shelving themselves.

Kuro thought for a moment, trying to figure out what she was waiting for. "Did you know?" he asked, "about their families."

"Oh yes. There is little I do not know about my students," she said threateningly.

"Then why did you make them be in a group together? Why did you even let them be in the same class?"

She nodded slightly, as if approving of his questions. "They need to work this out between themselves, and soon. If it is allowed to fester, it will become a deep unmovable hatred. I have seen it before. There are many children here whose families fought on opposite sides of the war. Those rifts are hard to close, but it is necessary to do so."

"The war?" said Kuro, thinking back to the fight he had just witnessed. "When did all that stuff happen with their families?"

McGonagall's stern expression wavered a bit as she recalled the dark times. "Fred died defending Hogwarts in the war. Avery was apprehended by Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley a few months later."

Kuro did some quick math, and then did it again a bit more slowly to check his sums. "That means they never even met them. Why are they still so upset about it? They were gone before they were born."

"That makes it so much easier for them to love them." explained McGonagall. "They never knew their relatives to know their flaws. They imagine them as perfect people: loving, clever, brave, noble."

She looked lost in thought for a moment before shaking herself back to the present. She then did something that never failed to unnerve Kuro, she smiled. It was a very slight smile, slightly sinister, devious. "Do you think it an accident that they are in the same transfiguration class, or the same group?" She gave Kuro time to think before continuing. "This is your second time taking my class. Do you remember what you did for this project last year?"

Kuro thought back to the previous term. He'd worked with Charlie whenever possible, but he couldn't remember ever having a team project. "No," he said, perplexed. "I don't think we had one."

"Odd that," she said without explanation.

"You made up this whole project just so they'd be in the same group?" said Kuro, flabbergasted.

She shrugged noncommittally.

"How did you know they'd be in the same group? You didn't make them team up until after all the other groups were full. We were the leftovers."

"I have been teaching this class for substantially longer than you have been alive, Kuro," she said with both pride and weariness. "There is very little that happens in my class that I cannot predict. I knew you three would be stuck in a group together before the first class of the term had ended."

"Wait," said Kuro. "The three of us? You knew I'd be in their group?"

McGonagall nodded slightly, as she casually read over some of the notes Azalea had made.

"Why? What did I do to deserve this?" Kuro lamented loudly.

"I thought you might learn something from them," McGonagall said pleasantly, ignoring Kuro's misery. "They are both quite clever and you have been doing a fine job compiling their notes." She handed the sheaf of papers she'd collected to him.

"You couldn't have known," said Kuro, jaw hanging open.

McGonagall raised an eyebrow. "Couldn't I?" she said as if his doubt were insulting. "But that is entirely secondary. I believe that you have the best chance of healing the rift between the two."

"Wha..." was all Kuro was able to vocalize. Getting Victoire and Azalea to get along seemed like making a cobra and mongoose take tea together.

"They both care a great deal about their family. You are close with both Teddy Lupin and Belladonna Avery. That earns you some degree of respect."

"Bella nearly killed me last year," Kuro argued.

"And she hasn't since," said McGonagall as though this were high praise. "She has even acted in your defense. For Belladonna, this is exceptional. You are also their senior, that is of some value."

"They're both nearly a head taller than me," grumbled Kuro.

"You are also not taking sides," continued McGonagall, ignoring his protests. "Anyone else would have sided with their own house."

Another thought struck Kuro. This was very odd behavior for Professor McGonagall. He couldn't ever remember seeing her have a friendly conversation with a student. "Why are you telling me this?"

"Because, Kuro," she said with uncharacteristic uncertainty in her voice, "I am gambling. I believe that you have the best chance of forging a truce, but it is still only a slight chance. I am not a gambler by nature, Kuro. If I must take a chance, then I intend to stack the odds as much as possible. In this instance, that requires you know as much as possible. I said before that there is little that happens here that I cannot predict. However, last year you surprised me no less than four times. I am wagering on you doing so again."

This seemed terribly unfair of her. "What am I supposed to do?" he begged.

"I honestly cannot say," said the Headmistress dismissively as she examining the tattered pages of the book that had taken the brunt of Azalea's stupefy spell. "But if it is of any comfort, I believe you are already doing better than can be expected."

"How?" demanded Kuro. He'd just seen a research period descend into a duel.

McGonagall returned to her more familiar stern and unreadable state. "How do you think most students react to a duel erupting beside them?" she said as if asking a question nobody could answer in class.

"I... um..." Kuro stammered.

"You should get going," she instructed him without answering. "You will be late for your next class."

Kuro grabbed his bag and wandered out in a bewildered state. As he reached the library door, McGonagall added a final note. "That was a very nice shield charm. Ten points to Hufflepuff."


	15. Elf Magic

Whatever miracles McGonagall expected Kuro to work eluded him. As the weeks went on, the animosity between the two girls grew steadily. He made some feeble attempts to broker peace, but was met with fierce hostility when he tried. All he could manage was try to put the notes both of them were furiously generating into some kind of order. From the stack of parchment they were producing, It appeared they would be making a book rather than writing a short essay, as was assigned.

To make matters worse, Mary and Charlie were fighting. There had been a row one night in their room. Even muffled behind two sets of doors the shouts had been loud enough to quiet the common room and interrupt Edward's tripping charm practice on Kuro.

Charlie stormed out of her dorm to find most of the rest of Hufflepuff House looking at her in stunned silence. "What are you staring at?" she shouted before pushing her way out into the hall and disappearing.

Kuro saw Mary down the dormitory hall before the door swung back closed with an unreadably cold expression.

"What was that?" muttered Kuro.

Edward was no help at all. "It's girl stuff," he said. "It's nothing to do with us."

"Shouldn't we do something?" asked Kuro.

"Nope," said Edward with certainty. "Uncle Ron says that it's best to stay out of it. Boys can't understand girls. Now defend yourself. Sinistram pedes!"

Whatever had been said that night had cut a chasm between the two girls. They would barely even look at each other, let alone speak to one another. Mary stopped sitting with them at meals and spent as little time in Hufflepuff House as possible. Charlie claimed to be happy that Mary wasn't hanging around with them anymore, but Kuro wasn't so sure.

With Mary being absent and sullen, Charlie pretending to be fine, and Edward taking every opportunity to turn Kuro upside down, his evenings with Myrtle and Bindal became a refuge.

He wasn't sure if he could call the two of them friends. Bindal still treated Kuro like an offence against nature, and Myrtle was only capable of being in a good mood for minutes at a time, but they were the best company he had.

They made some progress in their magic, too. Kuro taught Bindal the levitation charm and the wand-lighting charm. And bindal succeeded in teaching Kuro to conjure water, though not yet a wash basin.

Kuro's first success had resulted in a deluge that soaked them both to the bone and flooded the washroom. Filch had come to investigate and they had to hide in stalls while Myrtle wailed about her endless torment until he left.

Bindal emerged from from his hiding place after Filch had fled, snickering to himself. When he saw the prideful smirk on Myrtle's face, he burst out laughing. It was an unpracticed voiceless wheeze that he didn't quite know how to handle.

Kuro and Myrtle couldn't help but join. Kuro giggled uncontrollably as Bindal gasped for breath and Myrtle tumbled over and over in the air laughing harder than she had in a decade.

Kuro felt like he'd forgotten how to laugh. Everything had turned so bleak that term. He was so giddy that he took the chance to cast the patronus charm. He whipped out his wand and exclaimed "Expecto Patronum!"

A silver cloud billowed from his wand and swirled a couple of times before evaporating. It was the closest he had ever come to casting it properly.

Bindal was instantly curious. "That is patronus charm?" he asked. "Is for fighting dementors? Can the Kuro monster be teaching it to Bindal?"

Kuro couldn't think of a reason why not, except he worried the enslaved elf would have the same issues with it that he did. "I'm really bad at it," he admitted. "But I can try if you want."

"Yes." Bindal said resolutely and sat down on the soaked floor attentively awaiting his lesson.

Kuro explained the charm as best he could. He demonstrated the wand motions using Sprig as a wand so Bindal could follow along with the real one. They practiced the pronunciation, which Bindal struggled with a little. Then he explained about the happy memory and Bindal's enthusiasm drained away. Bindal looked at the wand in his hand like it had dealt him a cutting insult.

Kuro tried to sympathise "I have trouble with that part, too. I don't have a lot of happy memories either."

Bindal shook his head. "Happiness is not being the problem... Patronus is elf magic," he said.

"What?" asked Kuro.

"Patronus spell. Is elf magic. Is heart magic. Wizards has stealed it from elves and elves is forgot."

"You really think so?" asked Kuro "I mean it has words and wands and stuff."

"I is really thinking so," said Bindal. "You is saying the heart feelings is making the magic. Is not maths and minds and movings. Is just pointing and feeling."

Kuro considered the argument. The patronus charm did seem very different than other spells they learned, and from what he had read in his history book, wizards had adapted a lot of their magic from other magical species. "Then you should steal it back," said Kuro encouragingly.

Bindal nodded and took up the wand again. His former enthusiasm was replaced with a grim determination as he began practicing in earnest.

Kuro helped guide Bindal where he could, though felt a bit of a sham correcting the form on a spell he couldn't cast, himself.

Bindal, refusing to be in Kuro's debt in any way, insisted on teaching him another elf spell, a door opening charm.

"Doors is like cats," he explained unhelpfully. "If they is closed, they is wanting to be open. If they is open, they is wanting to be closed. All you is needing to be doing is letting the magic let them be the way they is wanting." He also informed Kuro that it was easier to do with your hands full of trays of food since you were much more in the mindset of needing to have doors open themselves.

Kuro tried his best to understand the whims of bathroom doors while Bindal waved the wand fruitlessly while his tongue tripped over the words. They only managed to practice for a few minutes before the washroom door burst open.

Bindal vanished in an instant and Kuro saw his wand clatter to the ground where the elf had been standing. Kuro turned to face the intruder, expecting to find Filch and a scolding. Instead he found Potter, robes askew and wand drawn.. "What's going on?" he asked urgently.

"Nothing," said Kuro a little too quickly.

"Why are you in here?" Potter's frantic expression was rapidly changing to one of suspicion and anger. "This is a girls' washroom."

"Kuro is my friend," cried Myrtle. "He visits me. Not like some people who break their promises."

Kuro thought that he owed Myrtle a lot for covering for him twice in one night.

"I'm happy for you Myrtle," said Potter, backing away from the bawling spirit. "It just surprising..."

"What's that supposed to mean?" wailed Myrtle, interrupting him. "It's surprising that someone would be friends with Moaning Myrtle? That someone wouldn't just lie to her and abandon her?"

Potter looked genuinely distressed at Myrtle's onslaught and tried desperately to change the subject. "Kuro, what were you doing in here?" he asked as sternly as he could while trying to keep Myrtle at a distance.

"I was practicing my spells," responded Kuro defensively.

"Why is the floor wet?" asked Potter.

"I'm not very good at it," replied Kuro.

Potter seemed unable to find fault with the explanation. He floundered a bit before saying "Make sure you clean up before you leave," and sweeping out of the washroom.

Kuro was starting to get very bothered at Potter appearing for no reason. This was three times that he'd come out of nowhere to ruin otherwise wonderful moments.

He got a bit of retribution when Sprig escaped during a Defense Against the Dark Arts class the next week. Sprig started picking through every hole it could find looking for grubs, as was its habit. Kuro tried to call it back, but Potter scolded him for interrupting a long diatribe about Dementors.

He was describing the horrors that they could inflict in such terrible detail that Kuro expected to have nightmares about them. Out of annoyance, he let the bowtruckle continue its tiny, quiet rampage.

Late in the class, Kuro saw Sprig reach the cabinet containing the boggart. It poked and prodded the lock until it clicked open. Sprig abandoned it in disappointment and moved on, but Kuro's eyes did not. He looked at the cabinet, sitting innocuously right behind Potter. Potter had made them all expose their fears to him, why shouldn't they see his. He thought about the door swinging open and the boggart coming out, some great, hairy, fanged beast.

Then he felt it.

It was like Bindal had described, the door wanted to be open. Not like the apathetic stall doors in the washroom, this one really wanted to open, he just had to let it be what it wanted to be. In that moment it was as easy as falling down. The door swung open, not at his command, but with his permission, and the boggart emerged.

It was a dark hovering form, covered in tattered black rags which covered it all except for its bony rotting hands. It was a dementor like Potter had described. The boggart had taken the shape of the cumulative fear of the students as cultivated by Potter. The whole class gasped and shuddered as the foul beast hissed and wheezed.

Potter turned to face it abruptly and began to cast, "Expecto pat..." the rest of the words did not escape his mouth. The boggart changed the moment potter was facing it. It had been in the form that would frighten the students in the class the most, but as Potter became its main threat, it changed into two small boys, younger than Kuro, not yet Hogwarts age. They seemed like normal children for a moment, then their skin turned pale, their eyes red and snakelike. Their flesh began to sag and peel away and two huge snakes emerged, shedding the bodies of the boys like discarded robes.

They could not see his face, but the wand wavered in Potter's hand. He did not cast a patronus or riddikulus, the spell he had taught them. "Stupefy!" he said angrily and the boggart was blasted back into the cupboard. He slammed the door and latched the lock before turning to the students who looked back in shock and horror. There was a heartbeat where Potter was exposed, frightened, angry, and ugly before he said "Class dismissed," and swept from the room. 

Kuro was delighted. Seeing Potter knocked down a peg or two was wonderful. Not only that, he had cast a new spell. He was bursting to try again by the time he and Bindal were able to meet.

He faced the uncooperatively stationary toilet stall door with determination bordering on fervor. He recalled the feeling he had in class, of indignant annoyance and of the compliance of the door when it opened. He let those feelings overtake him and the door he was facing drifted gently open. Then he did another and another.

The more he let the doors swing open and closed the more familiar it felt. It was like how the air caught him when he fell, or pushed him along when he ran. That had been elf magic, too, he thought. It came most easily when he was afraid, or in danger. "What's next? He asked. I've got the door thing."

Bindal looked very dubious of the claim that Kuro had mastered opening and closing doors, but chose not to argue. "Washing," he said firmly.

"But I can make water just fine."

"You is not making it just fine," scolded Bindal, sounding remarkably professorial. "You is making it always cold and much too much. You is making very easy magic difficult. Is you okay in the brain?"

"You're not doing much better with wizard magic," countered Kuro. "How is your patronus coming along?"

"Is very good," said Bindal excitedly, missing the intended insult entirely. "Expecto patronum." he said proudly.

A faint but steady silver mist swirled from the wand forming a weak but steady barrier. Kuro tried not to be annoyed that Bindal had leapfrogged him in skill. It was an elf spell, after all, and Kuro was missing the key component, a truly happy memory.

"That is really good," admitted Kuro. "It took me nearly to Christmas to cast a single spell when I started learning.

Bindal, still not used to praise, lost his focus and his spell faltered. He looked proud, then hurt, then scared, then confused. "It is being nearly Christmas," he said.


	16. The Weeping Stall

Bindal was not the only one to have noticed Christmas break approaching. The first real snowfall at the end of November brought it sharply into focus, and with it, conversations about the Yule Ball.

People were having the same conversations at every meal of every day. He heard Shaun Cassidy list every eligible girl still looking for a date during breakfasts, and Meredith Thrump lament her ugly sack of a dress each day at lunches.

"She needs a fairy godmother," said Charlie as they were being escorted by a surly looking auror to Care of Magical Creatures.

Kuro and Edward shared bemused looks. "Fairies would make awful godparents," said Edward. "They're much too small."

"It's a muggle thing," explained Charlie. "My dad used to read me this story about a girl with a fairy godmother who made her a pretty dress when she only had ugly rags to wear to a ball."

"Sounds dodgy," said Edward. "I don't think fairies can sew."

Charlie waved off his arguments. "Muggles get things wrong all the time. It was probably a witch," she said. "Loads of transfiguration in that story: mice into men, pumpkins into carriages. It might have been McGonagall, actually. She's pretty old."

Kuro was skeptical of Charlie's claims, but his best expert on Muggle stuff wasn't available for comment.

Jordan Selwyn from St. Brutus' had asked Mary to the ball, which deepened the rift between her and the others. He was a Ravenclaw in the year above them and in the transfiguration club. He could also turn into a stoat, which Mary seemed to find deeply impressive. None of those things were terribly troublesome. His real failing was his habit of spending time in the company of Evelyn Lemieux. He was often nearby when she was taunting Kuro and the others and he had never lifted a finger in their defense.

Mary seemed happy to ignore this fact. She assured Kuro that he was very different in private. Kuro had to trust her on that as she was spending as much of her spare time as possible with him in that state. The only time Kuro ever saw Mary anymore was in class.

He missed hanging out with her.

Most other people had also sorted out their dates. Charlie had hoped to go with someone, but wouldn't say who, only that they were going with someone else.

Edward had asked her to be his date out of sympathy. Charlie had graciously accepted, but Edward wasn't even going to be able to go. The moon would be full that night and he would be pretty much stuck as a wolf from dinner onwards. He'd be in Hagrid's care while everyone else was partying.

He said he didn't mind so much. Crowds and loud music were a lot to handle and he worried that he'd have been changing shape and colour all night. Having a date to the ball he couldn't attend made him feel better about missing out. For reasons they refused to explain to Kuro, they asked him not to tell anyone else that Edward couldn't come.

With their own affairs settled, they hounded Kuro endlessly about who he was going to go with.

"Why do I need to go with anyone?" he grumbled in Care of Magical Creatures one day. "Why do I have to go at all? I don't care about music or dancing or parties. Can't I go to Hagrid's with Edward"

Edward liked the idea, but Charlie was scandalized. "Don't be ridiculous. Balls are amazing! You have to go and you have to bring someone. It's the rules."

"How many balls have you been to?" accused Kuro.

"This is my first!" exclaimed Charlie excitedly, entirely missing Kuro's point.

He wished that Charlie had more to do in class. The other students were all feeding and cleaning and training their creatures, but her tigerpillar had built itself a cocoon nearly the size of hagrid and was going to spend the winter metamorphosing into a butterfly. Hagrid had praised her for the excellent care she had given it that allowed it to grow so quickly, but now she mostly just had to keep it from freezing. That left plenty of time in class to bother Kuro. "So who have you asked so far?"

Edward was suddenly interested, though he was not nearly so free as Charlie to interrogate Kuro. His adamantine pangolin had rather warmed to him and no longer curled into a tight ball at his approach. Instead, it climbed him like a termite hill searching for bugs with its foot-long tongue. If ever Edward's attention wavered, he would find that tongue up his nose, probing his sinuses. He eavesdropped as best he could while trying to divert the pangolin's attention with some ants.

"I haven't asked anyone and I'm not going to," said Kuro loudly enough that the rest of the class heard.

"Don't be like that Kuro," shouted Shaun Cassidy who was trying to feed some lettuce to a very sleepy head of the tritoise. "There's still loads of girls without dates."

"You'd know," sniped Mary from across the stables. "You've asked them all."

Kuro snorted back a laugh. He really missed Mary.

Shaun had made a list of eligible girls ranked from most desirable to least and had asked them all in order. He hadn't kept that enough of a secret though, and the girls had already found out before he started. He had asked everyone without a date and several with one and was still without a partner. "Why don't you ask Veronica?" Shaun said angrily. She was one of the first to turn him down. "I hear she's still looking for a date."

"Not true," said Jennifer Tanaka. "She asked Oliver at lunch."

Shaun looked at Oliver with indignant fury at his betrayal while the rest of the room erupted with laughter.

These conversations were endless and circular. Everyone's date, or lack thereof was interrogated daily and gossiped about adnauseam.

Even classes were being taken over by the ball. In charms they were learning necktie tying spells, in arithmancy they were deriving dance steps from first-principles, and in potions they were working on hair tonics and skin creams to make them sparkle and glow on the big night.

Even Wizarding Wellness had turned to ball-related topics. Madame Hooch explained that there were risks and dangers involved in romance and poor choices that might be made at a ball. She then went on to spend two classes providing baffling explanations and dire warnings using nothing but quidditch metaphors. Kuro was pretty much lost for all of it, having no idea what an offside broomtail foul was or what proper quaffle care had to do with dancing.

Transfiguration class provided some small respite. Professor McGonagall had no patience for such trivialities in her class. She silenced banter with a glare and any notes passed were found to have been rewritten in her hand when opened by the recipient, containing threats of detention.

While being largely free of talk of the ball, it was not a perfect refuge. When class ended, he was treated to a now familiar ritual which was undermining any chance Kuro had of getting Azalea and Victoire to get along.

Freed of the totalitarian rule of Professor McGonagall, the first-year students leaped into action, making up for lost time. They would chatter like mad squirrels and swarm into groups like cockroaches. Eventually, a boy would be adequately prodded by his friends to ask Victoire Weasley to the ball. Famous, clever and beautiful, Victoire was thought to be the most desirable girl in the class. However, every time a boy approached, her intimidatingly bright smile and thoughts of her terrifyingly powerful uncle would shatter his resolve. He would panic and flee, or worse, he would ask Azalea instead.

Being second choice to Victoire was about the worst insult they could give to Azalea. She typically responded to their advances with hexes and foul language. This seemed a relief, somehow, to the afflicted boys. Spending an hour having leeches removed was a preferable fate than either asking Victoire out, or having Azalea accept a proposition.

Kuro's clandestine evenings with Bindal and Myrtle were a welcome reprieve. But they were becoming fewer and farther between. Bindal was extra busy with the approaching ball, and Charlie was around more since the snow started falling. Winter storms meant fewer quidditch practices, making it harder for Kuro to sneak away. Kuro was glad to have her around again, but their time together was strange and awkward.

Charlie was still really upset about her fight with Mary, which had settled into a cold war. Charlie refused to acknowledge that Mary even existed most of the time. Mary was doing her part to make that as easy as possible, returning to Hufflepuff house only to sleep, and sitting far from them in class. Charlie continued to refuse to talk about it, saying only "If I'm not a person to her, then she's not a person to me."

Charlie was also unusually tight-lipped about something else. Her and Edward were definitely scheming, but they refused to share any details. Kuro often found them in excited private conversation, which ended the moment he approached. Edward received a package by owl one morning which he and Charlie were very excited about, but refused to open it at the breakfast table. When Kuro pried, they did a very bad job of pretending it wasn't anything interesting.

Attempting to avoid any questions Kuro had about her activities, Charlie became insistently curious about Kuro's occasional disappearances and was very suspicious of any excuses Kuro tried to make. She also enjoyed tormenting him with suggestions for partners to the dance. Both were lines of conversation Kuro aggressively avoided.

This all left Kuro and Charlie in the unusual situation of having nothing to say to each other. The foul winter weather kept them indoors and homework kept them chained to their desks. They studied together in relative silence, both frequently looking out the window at the seemingly endless snow, wishing to be somewhere else and boiling over with secrets they couldn't share.

Two days before the ball, after a particularly uncomfortable hour of astronomy homework, they were rescued from each other by Meredith. "Hey Charlie," she said as she approached their table in the common room. "The team is going to play some indoor quidditch to celebrate only losing by fifty to Slytherin. Want to come."

Charlie glowed with sweet relief and leaped from her seat.

"You could come, too, if you want," said Meredith to Kuro.

In Kuro's limited understanding, Indoor quidditch mostly included smacking bludgers at empty butterbeer bottles. "Thanks, but I'm fine," he said honestly, "Have fun."

Kuro pretended to go back to work, giving them time to leave. The moment the common room door closed, he shoved his books in his bag and headed for Myrtle's washroom.

He had no idea if Bindal would be there. He still had no way of contacting the elf, but he always seemed to be able to find Kuro when he wanted to. Regardless, an evening of elf magic practice was a far better use of his time than trying to map the orbits of planets and he had laundry to do. 

He crept through the hallways, avoiding the notice of a patrolling auror and sliding into the washroom unnoticed. He was greeted by the familiar sound of quiet sobbing coming from a stall.

"Hi Myrtle," he said. "How's it going?"

The sobbing stopped. That was unusual. Myrtle always answered with some baleful response about her endless misery and incalculable sorrow. "Myrtle?" said Kuro.

Silence.

He waved his hand and the stall door swung open. 

It was not Myrtle. 

A wave of guilt and shame crash over him. He had visited so often that he had forgotten that this was a girl's toilet. He slammed the door shut again. "I'm sorry!" he shouted. "I um... wrong room."

The stall door flew open and Victoire Weasley stormed out, red faced with anger and tears streaming down her cheeks. "Expelliarmus!" she cried attempting to disarm him.

He wasn't holding a wand to lose, but he wasn't inclined to stand in the line of fire in case she pulled out other curses. He dove behind a stand of sinks to hide.

"Get out here so I can kill you, pervert," said Victoire furiously. Her voice was hoarse and cracking from crying.

"I'm really sorry," Kuro repeated as he crawled around the plumbing to stay away from the point of her wand. "I was just coming to visit Myrtle."

"Liar! Nobody comes to visit Myrtle. Aeramentum Asteraceae!"

The copper pipes shielding Kuro bloomed into chrysanthemums and fell away. He dashed from cover and put a stall wall between he and her, hoping she hadn't learned how to transfigure wood panelling yet. "Nobody comes here at all!" he argued in his defense. "It's always empty. What were you doing in here?"

"She was crying," said a smug voice beside him. Myrtle had floated through the wall and was looking rather pleased. "She's been here every day for a week."

"Shut up! Ferrus Iridaceae!"

The screws holding the walls together blossomed into beautiful purple irises and the stall collapsed.

"She's been moaning more than me," continued Myrtle. "Why doesn't anybody like me? What am I doing wrong? Why doesn't anyone want to take me to that ball. Boo hoo hoo!"

"Not helping, Myrtle," said Kuro, extricating himself from the collapsed stall and fragrant blossoms. This was the one time he could have used an interruption by Filch. He fumbled for his wand and spun to meet Victoire tip to tip as she bore down on him.

He saw her preparing to cast another spell. He threw up a shield charm as she shouted "Slugulus Erecto."

The curse hit his shield and rebounded right into her. She doubled over and dropped to her knees. "Oh no! I'm sorry," begged Kuro. He didn't know what she'd just done to herself, but Potter would have Kuro's head if he learned of his involvement. "Are you okay?"

Victoire looked up at him, pale and sweaty, and opened her mouth to yell at him again. Instead of a cutting insult, though, she belched up slimy slug the size of his fist. It was followed shortly by another three in short succession.

Horrified but not unsympathetic, Kuro helped her to a toilet so she could empty her stomach in some degree of privacy.

He waited outside feeling ill, himself, from the sounds of gurgling belches followed by the telltale 'blorp' of a slug hitting the water. "Should I take you... should you go see Madame Pomfrey?" he asked, uncertain what to do.

"No," Victoire groaned between belches. "It'll stop in a while."

"I should go then. Will you be okay on your own?"

"Stay," she said fiercely before being overtaken by another series of slug expulsions. "I'm not finished with you."

Kuro laughed to himself. He was amazed at how she could still be threatening while puking slugs. He sat on the floor and leaned his back against the stall door. "That's a pretty good spell," said Kuro after ten minutes of listening to the grotesque rhythm of slimy belches, splashes, and flushes.

"My uncle Ron taught it to me," she replied weakly. "In case any boys tried anything, he said."

"I could have used an uncle Ron," mused Kuro. "All I knew how to do was run away and hide when I got here."

Kuro busied himself gathering flowers and flushing them down the toilet in an attempt to cover their tracks while Victoire had another lengthy episode of gastropod upheaval. Myrtle, not as concerned with Victoire's dignity or privacy, hovered above the stall and regularly gestured to Kuro the size of the more impressive slugs being flushed.

After a long quiet period of retching, the sounds of illness from Victoire's stall lessened to uneven breathing and sniffles. "Kuro," she said in a pathetically diminished voice, "Why does everyone hate me?"

Kuro was completely baffled. He looked to Myrtle, who seemed equally unsure. "What are you talking about?" said Kuro. "You're the most popular girl in your class, aren't you?"

"Then why don't I have any friends?"

Kuro started to argue that her claim was rediculous, but now that he thought about it, he'd never seen Victoire hanging out with anyone. She was a leftover in class, just like him. "I don't know. Maybe... maybe they're jealous. I mean, you're the cleverest girl in class; there isn't anyone that can keep up with you except Azalea. You're really pretty, everyone says so, and you've got a famous family."

"That's not fair," Victoire sniffed. "Everyone expects me to be perfect. My dad was head boy, my mom was in the tri-wizard tournament, my uncles are the owners of the Wizard Wheezes shop, the Minister of Magical Transportation, and Harry bloody Potter. I even get compared to aunt Hermione, which is totally unfair."

Normally Kuro would have thought she were bragging, listing all of her famous family members, but she said it all with such bitterness.

"I'm supposed to live up to all of that. When I try, i get teased for being a know it all. When I don't, everyone tells me how much better my parents were than me." Her voice was so sad that Kuro's chest hurt to hear it.

"Your cousin Edward got the same thing last year," said Kuro, trying to be comforting. "You should have seen how Slughorn fussed over him."

"Don't even start on Teddy," her voice echoed bitterly around the washroom. "He's not my cousin. He was supposed to be my friend. He won't even hang out with me, here, too busy with his Hufflepuffs. Even he found someone to go with the ball with. He's a bloody werewolf and he can find a date. Why can't I?" It sounded like she was wiping her nose on her sleeve as she said it.

Kuro was very curious to learn about her and Edward's differing views on each other, but he didn't think it was the best time to pry. He thought, instead, he should try to be comforting. "Any boy would gladly go to the ball with you. They're just scared to ask."

Victoire snorted loudly and blew her nose on some loo roll. "Really?" she said.

"Definitely," said Kuro. "Just ask anyone out without a date. Shaun Cassidy's head would explode if you asked him."

"But that's not how it works," she said glumly. "Boys ask the girls. Only shrewish girls ask boys."

"That's not true," rebutted Kuro. "Lots of girls asked people out in my class. Veronica Singh in my class asked Oliver out, and she's fine. Oliver's just shy."

"Really?" asked Victoire with a note of cautious optimism.

"Really," assured Kuro. For someone so self-assured, he found it hard to believe she was so afraid to ask someone to the ball.

She opened the door to her stall slowly. She was pallid and soaked with sweat. Her normally perfect hair was a matted tangle and there was a lengthy trail of slug slime smeared down her front. "Anyone?"

"Just about," said Kuro. "Probably not people who already have a date, but everyone else."

"Even you?" she asked pathetically.

"Sure," he said. "Even me."

"Okay," she said with a finality Kuro found very distressing. "I'll see you Saturday, then."

Kuro paused. He wasn't sure that he understood. "What?" he said defensively.

"You said you'd go to the ball with me." she said more clearly.

"Well I said I would, but I didn't think you were actually asking me to go," Kuro stammered. "You don't even like me."

"That wasn't the question," her forceful energy was starting to return. "Will you go to the ball with me or not?"

Kuro was backing away from her in fear. He suddenly knew how those boys in class had felt. He imagined the angry looks of everyone in the hall that had failed to ask her out, and the looming terror of Potter making him disappear for daring to stand next to his niece. "I don't know how to dance," he begged. "I'm shorter than you, and I don't know anything about music. I'll be a terrible date."

"Will you go with me?" she repeated, her courage growing steadily.

Kuro had talked himself into a corner. He didn't want to be a liar. He certainly didn't want her to start throwing spells at him again. "Okay," he agreed, wincing.

"Thank you," said Victoire looking very much more put together. "I'll meet you on the staircase at six on Saturday."

She strode proudly out of the mess of a bathroom. She stopped before opening the door to wave her wand. "Tergeo," she said and the filth, slime, and sweat leaped from her robes and hair, leaving her neat and clean.

Kuro stared after her in a firestorm of dread, confusion, astonishment, and frustration.

Myrtle floated over to him looking very pleased to have born witness to the whole affair. "She seems nice," she said mockingly.

"Is this how romance is supposed to work?" asked Kuro.

"I wouldn't know," moaned Myrtle sorrowfully. "I died before I had the chance to try."

"Lucky."


	17. Foul Ball

Word of Kuro going to the Yule ball spread faster than dragon pox in a kindergarten. By breakfast the next morning he was being variously congratulated, warned, threatened and admonished.

Charlie was furious that Kuro had lied about going out with Victoire for months and refused to hear any version of the truth. Edward was so angry about Kuro dating his almost cousin that he could barely form sentences around him and had to leave the room several times to stop himself turning into a wolf prematurely.

Shaun Cassidy was the only one really happy for Kuro. "Good on you, mate," he said at breakfast while Kuro was hunting for something more interesting than plain oatmeal to eat. "You're a braver man than I. She was on my list, but with an uncle like Potter... Well, I'd not risk pissing on that dragon."

Azalea went to the effort of hunting him down between classes. He rounded a corner to find her fierce eyes peering at him through her vine-like bangs. "Weasley?" she demanded. It was more of an accusation than a question.

"She asked me," Kuro defended wearily.

"So you'd just go with anyone that asked?" she said as though it were the most deplorable act imaginable.

"Sure, why not?" replied Kuro, already too exhausted from interrogations that day to bother arguing.

"Even me?" she challenged.

Kuro couldn't think why that was any more absurd than going with Victoire. "Yeah," he sighed. "Even you."

Azalea's face went through a series of contortions while she attempted to process his response. Unable to settle on how she felt about it, she punched him and stormed off.

He staggered back around the corner and walked face-first into a billowing black mass of robes.

"Sorry," he wheezed, not looking up. He moved to walk around whomever he crashed into, but they moved to block him.

"Kuro, just who I was hoping to see," the wearer of the robes said in a joyless and threatening tone. "I hear you're taking my niece to the ball,"

Kuro spent the next ten minutes listening to Potter's thinly veiled threats and vivid descriptions of what happens to wizards who don't treat witches well. Potter seemed to have taken no notice that Victoire was bigger and stronger than Kuro, and better at magic than him in almost every regard. He doubted that she was getting a similar set of warnings. Instead, she was probably being armed with another curse like the slugchucking one she knew already.

An acquiescent "Yes, sir," was all he could muster at the end of the lecture. He had no desire to anger Potter and get himself disappeared. All he really wanted to do was hide.

As the day dragged on, the rumor mill ran nonstop. Kuro counted eleven different versions of the story of his and Victoire's courtship. It ranged from them falling in love on the train to Hogwarts and maintaining a secret romance ever since, to Kuro being Victoire's house elf and being obligated to go with her. The most frequent version involved Victoire losing some kind of bet.

Kuro wished desperately for it to be Sunday, when the school would empty for the holidays and leave him in peace. With luck, they'd have forgotten all about him and Victoire by the time they returned in the new year. He still had to survive the gauntlet of the ball before that could happen.

He considered feigning illness. He might even be believed. Charlie was looking rather green on the last day of class and turned in quite early after being quite sick following dinner. He could just claim the same illness and have a relaxing day in the hospital wing instead of facing the horrors of the dance.

He weighed the consequences of standing up Victoire. A few hours of vomiting slugs didn't seem so bad, but if Potter took it poorly he would likely never see daylight again.

The day of the dance arrived with much fanfare. Many of the girls started getting ready before lunch. Gallons of Madame Primpernelle's skin creams and hair tonics were being smeared on. Every mirror in the school was occupied by a gaggle of girls noisily trying on hairstyles and makeup.

Hoping for a place to hide from the madness, Kuro went to see Myrtle, but even her washroom had been taken over by the fifth-year Gryffindor girls. She was moping in the hallway, grumbling pitifully about how intolerably elegant everyone looked.

The decorations were being laid thick. Not just reserved for the great hall, Flitwick, McGonagall, and senior members of the transfiguration club were lining the corridors with sparkling sculptures of silver and ice interspersed with ornate topiaries of holly. The grand staircase had been laid with an enchanted carpet that changed color to compliment the robes of whomever walked on it. The candles and oil lamps had been replaced with fairyfire lanterns which glowed like moonlight and shed glittering sparks that fell like snow.

Edward had left early for Hagrid's. Kuro would have enjoyed spending the day there, but Edward was still angry at Kuro for going to the ball with Victoire. It was a stance Edward completely failed to be able to explain. He was adamant that she was dreadfully annoying, of no real relation to him, and he had no interest in being around her. This seemed at odds with his threats of burying Kuro in a shallow grave if he so much as laid a hand on her.

Charlie was unavailable to keep him company due to being laid up in bed, feeling quite ill. Kuro wasn't sure he could handle her enthusiasm, anyway. If one more person told him to smile and how much fun it was going to be he thought he might scream.

Late in the afternoon, the boys started to ready themselves. It took only a few minutes except for the tying of the bowties. The only one that knew the spell was Johannas Plumb and it took a while for him to work it on everyone. Even so, they were all ready well before the beginning of the ball and had to sit around the common room sweltering in their layers of robes.

Kuro felt ridiculous, but at least he looked the same kind of ridiculous as everyone else. The boy's dress robes were nearly indistinguishable from one another. He thought they all looked like penguins that had gotten stuck in umbrellas.

The ball started officially at five o'clock sharp. Naturally nobody was so unfashionable or uncool as to show up on time. Kuro, having no particular interest or skill in either of those things, was the second person there. The first, being a waiter who was surprised to see anyone.

"The doors open at five," the startled man said.

"It is five," said Kuro. "The doors were open."

"Well, yes," the waiter agreed, though he seemed quite put out that Kuro wasn't getting the hint. He tried a new angle. "The music will be starting at six," he said politely.

Kuro understood very well what the waiter was trying at, but Kuro was hot, hungry, and sick of people. Right now, the great hall was the coolest and least crowded place in the castle, and there were platters of food, elegantly laid out for his enjoyment alone.

Kuro was brushing the crumbs of his third mince tart off his robes when he heard the waiter repeat his polite admonishment. "The doors open at five, sir."

Kuro looked to see who the second most uncouth person in the castle was. He nearly choked on his tart when he saw it to be Edward. He was striding in, looking impressed and curious at the decoration. He was dressed exactly like all the other boys and looked much like he had when Kuro had met him the year before: he moved a little bit stiffly, his hair was very neatly parted, and his expression very focused. He caught sight of Kuro and his composure wavered slightly. He grinned and waved before remembering himself.

Kuro picked up a pair of pastries with undefinable savoury fillings and walked over to him as casually as he could. Kuro was worried that Edward would snap at him, and on the night of a full moon, that snap could be quite dangerous. "What are you doing here?" he asked cautiously as he offered him a pastry.

Edward grabbed the pastry and shoved it in his mouth, then gave a series of gestures that implied everything was fine.

"That's great," Kuro was relieved that he might have a friend at the dance. "How?"

Edward waved Kuro off and marched over to a table to refill his mouth. Kuro followed.

"Edward, did you get a potion or something? Are you sure you're not going to turn into a wolf?"

Edward grinned and nodded, his fangs flashing brightly in the fairyfire lights as he shoved a whole sweetroll in his mouth.

"Edward, what's going on?" Kuro asked with growing suspicion.

Edward shrugged innocently.

Something seemed very off about Edward. His movements were wrong, his expressions too expressive. "Edward, why aren't you talking to me?"

Panic grew in Edward's eyes and he stopped chewing.

"Edward, why aren't you angry with me?"

His shoulders fell and he slapped his palm to his forehead in a very familiar way.

"Charlie?" Kuro exclaimed.

"Shhhh." she hissed, spattering him with pastry filling. She looked around quickly at the empty hall then grabbed Kuro by the shoulder and dragged him off to a corner as if they might be overheard otherwise.

"Charlie," Kuro started.

"Quiet," Charlie interrupted in a whisper loud enough to echo around the empty hall.

"Charlie," Kuro repeated in a whisper. "What are you doing here. I thought you were sick. Why are you dressed as Edward? How do you look so much like him? Why do you have fangs?"

"Weasley Wizard Wheezes, the lot of it," she said looking very worried that she'd been caught. "Puking pastils to get sick. Insta-fangs and a dupli-nose for the face. The hair was easy, just needed to comb it. Edward gave me his robes. We're pretty much the same size." Her voice was heavy with disappointment at that fact. "Had a voicebox too, but it's not working... be honest, is the disguise convincing? Will it work?"

"Yeah, very convincing. It fooled me. But why?" pressed Kuro.

She looked around again for eavesdroppers. The one waiter was devotedly ignoring them and the band was beginning to set up but paid them no mind. She took a deep breath and then it all spilled out like it had been building up for weeks and the dam had finally burst "Edward really fancies this Gryffindor girl in his Duelling club, Wednesday Gryffith. Says he can't talk to her though. Too shy. His tongue gets a foot too long and his hair turns purple every time he tries. And I was all like, 'I could talk to her for you,' and he was 'like that would be great but then she'd know that I wasn't brave enough to do it myself,' and you know how Gryffindors are, and then I told him about this muggle story called Cyrano de Bergerac where a guy hides in bushes and tells this other guy what to say, and then in class one day Slughorn was all like 'I can't even tell you two apart' cause he's terrible but then we got this idea that I could go to the ball as him and dance with Wednesday and sort of woo her and he'd get a foot in the door and I'd get to dance with lots of girls with nice hair and pretty dresses and it seemed to make so much sense." She was anxiously stuffing strawberry tarts into her mouth the entire time she talked.

"Why didn't you tell me?" was the first thing Kuro could think to say, though his mind was racing with questions he couldn't quite put voice to yet.

Charlie rolled her eyes guiltily. "We thought you might tell your girlfriend," she said as though it were obvious. "We didn't want the secret getting out."

Kuro didn't bother arguing the point. He knew it was useless. "It would have been better to tell her. Victoire knows Edward better than anyone," said Kuro. "They practically grew up together. Don't you'll think she'll notice?"

"I hadn't thought of that." Charlie scrunched up her face like she was scheming. It looked very odd with Edward's nose. "But that's perfect!" She smacked her fist into her palm triumphantly. "You're her date. Just keep her away from me."

"So you want me to hang out with Victoire all night and not talk to you?" Kuro asked disappointedly.

"She is your girlfriend, isn't she? Now go meet her and keep her away from me."

Kuro wanted to argue, but other students had started filtering into the hall, as were the evening's chaperones. McGonagall entered looking terrifyingly regal in long, weighty emeral dress robes. At her side was Potter and most of the other teachers. 

Charlie paid them no mind. She spun Kuro around and gave him a shove towards the door. "And remember that Edward is, I mean, I'm angry at you."

Kuro was trying to imagine how this evening could get worse. How could Charlie and Edward have thought this was a good idea? This never would have happened if Mary were around to talk sense into them. He walked slowly out of the hall and out to the grand staircase as though he were walking to the gallows.

Girls were taking it in turn to descend majestically down the staircase with glittering fairies dancing all about them. Boys were waiting to take up their partners as they reached the ground floor and walk gracefully together to the hall. Some of them seemed to quite enjoy the pageantry of it all. Many seemed nervous and uncertain, though, which gave Kuro some comfort. Maybe he wasn't the only one with knots being tied in their stomach.

He already regretted eating the pastries.

A fashionably appropriate amount of time after six, Victoire appeared at the top of the stairs. She wore an elegant gown of rich blue silk which shimmered as if lit by a carefully placed moon and fluttered delicately in a magical breeze. Her hair and makeup were immaculate and made her appear several years older than she was. He shoes sparkled as they emerged from beneath her dress and gave her several more inches over Kuro than she already had.

Her breathtaking beauty and well practiced elegance made Kuro feel deeply and profoundly ugly. She looked him up and down as she stepped up to him. He felt like the dirt she would have an elf wash off her shoes. "Not as bad as I expected," she said as though it were a compliment. He wondered if her and Bindal were trading notes.

"Well?" she said uncertainly and gave a little twirl. "How do I look?"

She seemed genuinely worried. Kuro stared in bemusement long enough for her to start looking very uncertain. Kuro assured her as best he could. "You look very nice."

"You don't think the cut is too European? Is it too long? Does it show too much shoulder? My hair is frizzing isn't it?" She babbled.

Kuro rolled his eyes. "You look like a bloody painting." he grumbled. "Stop being ridiculous."

This made her much more comfortable. Not that she seemed any more assured about her appearance, but Kuro's disdain rallied enough pride that she wasn't going to show it. She took his arm and swept into the hall with Kuro jogging to keep up.

In his brief absence, the hall had filled considerably. No longer cool and open, Kuro was being dragged through a forest of bodies and noise. It was somehow so much louder and more crowded with everyone standing and milling about than with everyone sitting at the house tables.

The band struck up to roaring applause making the already noisy room deafening. Everyone started moving at once, knocking Kuro into Victoire who was standing frozen, posed like a mannequin with her arms held out stiffly at strange angles. "What are you doing," he asked as he avoided being trod on by whirling neighbors.

"Waiting for you to dance with me," she said through gritted teeth.

"I told you I don't know how." Kuro looked around the room hoping for either guidance or escape.

The older students were all moving and twirling in time. The rainbows of girl's gowns flashed and fluttered, appearing and receding behind the black robes of the boys like parrots flocking together with ravens. There was a grace and joy in the movement of the most skilled, something Kuro hadn't seen before in other wizards. He could see why someone might actually enjoy to dance.

He was comforted by glimpses of some of the other younger students like him. A few were passably keeping pace, but most were clumsy and there were several exchanges going on that mirrored his and Victoire's. He wasn't the only one that didn't know how the steps.

He faced Victoire and almost had time to still his nerves before she grabbed his hands, shoved them into place, and started dragging him around the dance floor.

He had almost sorted out the pattern to things when they changed the music and suddenly he had a whole new dance to learn. He was loosely aware of Victoire giving him instructions and admonishments but it was too loud to hear properly and it was taking a lot of focus not to crash into anyone.

He spotted Charlie as they swept through the room. She was dancing with the Ravenclaw, Marcelle Kosman who was looking rather shocked at the vigor of her partner. What Charlie lacked in grace, she made up for in enthusiasm. Kuro tried to move Victoire to the other end of the dance floor to keep them separate.

"That's better," she shouted over the music, apparently believing that he was learning to lead.

The music played on and Kuro had to keep constant watch for Charlie. She changed partners with every song and her energetic movements made her unpredictable. Kuro thought that if he was working to keep Victoire away from her, she could do a little more to make it easy. It was going to be an exhausting evening if this kept up.

As Kuro did his best to attend to Charlie, he noticed someone else keeping track of him. Potter's gaze was fixed to him as he danced with Victoire.

The band offered a reprieve of sorts. The music slowed and the floor emptied, leaving only the proper couples swaying together. Kuro saw Mary there with Jordan, dancing with her head on his shoulder. Jordan looked proud as punch, holding her tight against him, but her eyes were downcast.

Charlie was off to the side scowling in frustration at a nearby couple. They rotated slowly as they wobbled against each other until Kuro could see the reason. It was Wednesday Gryffith, Edward's crush, and she was deeply entangled with the boy she was dancing with. She wasn't leaving a lot of room for Charlie to work her wiles.

Kuro encouraged Victoire over to a table full of hors-d'oeuvres. He didn't know what they were or what they were made of, but they looked fancy in the sort of way Victoire might like, and it was far from Charlie. Kuro was relieved that she seemed to have no more interest in a slow, romantic dance than he did.

She was adequately distracted for a time, sampling odd smelling cheeses and commenting on the quality of the decor, but she eventually caught sight of Charlie.

"Is that Teddy? Why is he by himself?" she asked. "Wasn't he coming with your friend Charlie?"

Kuro was startled that she knew that. He didn't think she and Edward were on speaking terms. "She's um..." Kuro stuttered. "She's sick. Couldn't come." He shoved a pile of something black and fishy in his mouth before she could ask more.

"I should dance with him. He looks lonely," she said surprisingly pleasantly. "You wouldn't mind would you?"

Kuro's mouth was too full to argue and she strode off across the floor before he could react. She didn't make it far, though. The music began to swell as a new song started up and Charlie found another partner: a dark haired girl in an emerald dress that had been hiding in a corner looking sullen and judgmental.

Charlie did not know about Azalea. How could she? Kuro hadn't told her much, not enough to recognize her at a ball. Not enough to know that she and Victoire were mortal enemies. Azalea seemed to know about Edward, though. She grinned with malice at Victoire before taking his hand.

Victoire shook with rage as Charlie swept Azalea onto the floor and they began to dance. Kuro had to practically tackle Victoire to keep her from storming over to them. Keeping her and Charlie apart became more of a struggle from then on and he actually had to try to keep her engaged in conversation to keep her distracted.

Kuro breathed a deep sigh of relief when Victoire eventually went to "freshen up." He sat and let his sore feet out of the ridiculous stiff and shiny shoes they had to wear.

Mary slid into the seat next to him without warning, making him jump. "What is Ed doing here?" she asked in an urgent whisper.

"Um, dancing," Kuro replied.

"It's the full moon," she replied. "Shouldn't he be, you know, a little more wolfish. And he's acting really strangely."

Kuro was surprised that she had thought of that. It spoke well of her, keeping track of such things, but that meant he needed to come up with a good excuse very quickly. "She drank a potion?" It sounded more like a question than a believable answer. Kuro really wasn't very good at lying to Mary. She had the same penetrating gaze as McGonagall that made him feel transparent.

"What do you mean she?" she asked warily. She scrutinized her dancing friend. "No?" She threw a hand over her mouth in shock and horror. "Charlie. She didn't."

Kuro nodded a quiet confirmation.

"I can't believe her!" Kuro couldn't tell if she was awed or angry. "Can't she do anything normal?"

They both gaped at her growing audacity. Her disguise was working well in the dim lighting of the dance hall. Her energy and buoyancy had made her a sought-after partner and girls were starting to seek her out to dance. To Kuro's horror, she was graciously accepting the hand of Evelyn Lemieux.

Charlie looked absolutely triumphant as the music started and she swept Evelyn around the floor, her perfect blonde curls bouncing as her flowing silver gown glittered and fluttered like the thousand galleons it probably cost.

"I'm going to kill her," grumbled mary.

"I'll help," agreed Kuro.

Mary stormed off and hauled Jordan away from his friends and back to the dance floor. Her seat beside Kuro was shortly refilled by the towering form of Meredith Thrump.

"What's up Kuro?" she said sympathetically.

"I'm not good at balls," he sighed.

"Me neither," she chuckled. "Look at me. I feel like an elephant wearing a circus tent. Wanna dance?"

Despite his protests, she pulled Kuro to the floor. She laughed and joked at their absurd pairing as they danced. He barely came up to the huge girl's waist. She insisted on following his lead despite the fact he had no idea what he was doing and felt like a mouse trying to push a mountain. It was the first time all evening that he had fun.

Of course it couldn't last.

The song ended and they bowed comically deeply to each other, then a lot of things happened all at once.

Kuro had let his attention slip for that dance and in his distraction, Victoire had returned. She was making a direct line for Charlie, and she looked mad.

Evelyn had parted ways with Charlie, and Jordan was flagging her down while Mary tried to stop him. It looked like Mary had shared Charlie's secret and Jordan was about to capitalize on it.

Azalea, seeing the approach of Victoire was taking up the vacant spot at Charlie's side.

The music started up, loud and fast, and dance floor became a whirling sea of dancers, blocking his vision and his path. He tried to fight his way forward, not even sure what he could do if he reached one of his friends, but he was buffeted by dancers. Through occasional gaps he could see Victoire and Azalea starting to glare at each other. On the other side of the room, Jordan Laughed while Evelyn cringed.

Then they were yelling. He couldn't hear them over the oppressive music, but he could see it: strained, red faces and wet eyes. Victoire and Azalea were shouting at each other, pointing violently at Charlie who was mutely panicking and looking for escape. Tears were streaming down Mary's furious face as she emptied a glass of punch over Jordan's head as he cackled at Evelyn's horror.

Everything was going horribly wrong. His friends were both in tears and he felt drops starting to fall down his own cheeks. It was so hot and so loud and so crowded. He needed to do something but he couldn't think, he couldn't even breathe. He felt like he was drowning in the panic and noise.

He reached for anything to help him. Magic welled within him. It was familiar, like the wind behind him when he ran. It would make it cool and quiet and he could think and breathe again. In his panic and misery, it was as easy as dropping a ball. He let it go.

High above the heads of the dancing students, a deluge of icy cold water coalesced. It fell in sheets, dousing the fairyfire torches and soaking the room, from the pastries by the door to the band on the stage and all the students in between.

The room was briefly cool, quiet, and dark. The fighting had stopped. He could think. He could breathe.

Then angry cries and lit wands started to fill the room. all he could think was that he very badly needed to be somewhere else. Anywhere else. He had to leave before they realized it had been him, before the whole school descended on him.

He remembered the quiet safety of a stall in Myrtle's bathroom and he felt like it was just a step away. He'd followed Bindal dozens of times when apparating and it seemed so easy, so natural. He just had to turn around and he'd be there. He took a step, let himself collapse into nothingness and get caught in the current of the ether.

He became like a ribbon of mist, little more than an idea drifting in between spaces. It was quiet and comfortable there. He he could just let go and become less than nothing forever. It would be easier than becoming whole. He let out a sigh but found no air in his lungs, or lungs with which to breath it. A suffocating panic started to take hold. The relaxing current was gone, replaced by a twisting, squeezing, crushing weight.

He had to escape he had to be somewhere, be something. He latched on to the first familiar place he could remember, a place he knew the feeling of. In an instant, he was whole again. Cold, soaking and alone, standing on a toilet in an abandoned girls lavatory.


	18. Ghost of Christmas Presents

Kuro watched students fill the thestral drawn carriages from a window in a high tower. Everyone was heading home for the holiday, though it was a much more solemn affair than it had been last year.

Kuro's accidental downpour the night before had ended the dance prematurely. McGonagall had cleaned up the water in a thrice, but even she couldn't unsog the food, fix the hair and makeup of hundreds of students, or undampen the mood.

Kuro saw Charlie, Mary, and Edward all take different carriages. Evelyn had taken no time in spreading the word about Charlie's disguise. Several girls were upset at having been deceived by Charlie, and Edward was being teased ruthlessly for letting a girl impersonate him.

Edward blamed Charlie, Charlie blamed Edward, and they both blamed Kuro.

The castle drained of students and with them the warmth and noise of Hogwarts. Only the strays and orphans were left to wander the halls, now. Kuro practically had the run of the school. He tried to tell himself that he should be excited. Now that he had figured out how to apparate, he go anywhere and do anything without Potter intruding, but the only place he wanted to be was his bed.

That mood failed to improve as the day went on. Just the effort of opening the door to leave his room, magically or manually, seemed beyond him. He just lay on his bed petting Graeae, who purred in her croaky fashion while Sprig searched the room for hiding bugs.

It was well dark when hunger and boredom urged him from his sedentary gloom. He left Hufflepuff to aimlessly wander the dark and empty halls. He wasn't sure where he'd find something to eat at this hour. The elves certainly weren't going to make it for him.

He was startled to hear raised voices and heavy footfalls approaching. He wasn't sure if curfew applied during holidays, but he thought it best not to test the rule. He ducked behind a gargoyle statue as the group approached.

"What do you mean he didn't get off the train?" McGonagall's voice echoed down the hall. She sounded brutally unsettled, almost panicked.

"He wasn't there. I searched the train myself, front to back." Potter's unmistakeable arrogant sneering voice responded.

"What were you even doing there?" asked McGonagall

"Picking up Teddy," said Potter. "Are we certain that he got on?"

They were passing Kuro's hiding spot, five of them. McGonagall and Potter led with wands lit. Another woman that Kuro did not know, an auror by the look of her, kept pace with them. Filch followed, panting just trying to keep up with them. Finally, the train Conductor, Stan Shunpike loped disinterestedly several paces behind.

Filch fought to catch his breath enough to respond. "Jugson was definitely on a carriage. I checked him off myself. I remember him, too. Smug little worm, tried to wriggle out of detention in his second year one time by drinking a badly brewed potion. As if not having any fingers or toes would save him." Filch spat at the idea.

"Thank you Argus," said McGonagall, cutting him off. "Mr. Shunpike, are you sure he was on the train?"

They were moving along quickly and Kuro would soon lose their conversation in the echoes. He crept along through the shadows behind them, trying to keep in earshot and out of sight. They reached a wide tower with a staircase spiraling up the centre of it and began to climb.

"Oh, no need for Misters, Missus. Just Stan is fine," replied the conductor.

"Stan, was Leonard Jugson on the train?" McGonagall repeated, her voice quavering with annoyance.

"I punched his ticket, that's a sure thing," said Stan conversationally. "Carriage thirteen B. Couldn't tell you if it were really him, though. Wouldn't know him from Merlin. All I know is there was one ticket per kid and one kid per ticket. The ledger all balances out."

"How does someone vanish from the Express?" Demanded McGonagall of the unconcerned conductor.

"Don't rightly know," replied Stan honestly. "Jump off the back, maybe? Can't apparate or nothing. That train's charmed near as much as this place."

"Could a student even open the back door?" said Potter.

"Sure," said Stan. "S'been broken since September. Some weird kid busted the latch back at the start of term."

Kuro felt a pang of guilt and pictured Leonard broken and bleeding somewhere on the tracks, having leaned too hard on the door.

"Who was in the compartment with him? What did they see?" asked McGonagall.

"A couple of first years," said Potter. "They say he got up partway through the trip and never came back. Odd that he wasn't in a compartment with his friends."

"Not particularly," noted McGonagall. "Leonard struggled to make any real friends."

"So he might just be another runaway?" said Potter.

"It is possible," agreed McGonagall.

They paused as they reached the top of the stairs. McGonagall grabbed the eagle-shaped bronze knocker on the large blue door before them and rapped sharply.

The knocker began to squawk out a riddle.

"With me at your side, you couldn't hope for a better date to the ball.  
While some have two left feet, I've none to trip over.  
I will certainly kiss you at the end of the night.  
And if you let me, I'll be by your side for the rest of your life.  
What am I?"

"It's a ruddy dementor," said McGonagall horrified. "That is just a disgusting riddle. I blame you for this, Potter. The whole school is obsessed with those damnable creatures."

The door swung open and the five adults strode into the dimly lit room beyond. Kuro was just able to slip inside before the door closed.

The room was spacious. Several marble statues stood in alcoves around the circular room, surrounding stiff-looking blue leather sofas and chairs. It had a high domed ceiling and inlaid with plaster depictions of planets and constellations that slowly shifted to match the sky, and two more doors at opposite sides with signs that read 'boys' and 'girls.' Kuro thought this must be the Ravenclaw common room.

"They're right to be scared of them," argued Potter. "I'm meant to be teaching them to defend themselves, aren't I? They need to know the threats."

"The dementor attacks have all but stopped in the past few years. They're in more danger from faulty Weasley products," McGonagall's tone made it sound like this was an argument they'd had before.

"The attacks have stopped, but the dementors haven't just gone away," Potter ranted. "They may be rallying, gaining strength to make an assault."

"This isn't the time," she said with finality.

"Which way to Jugson's room?" Asked the woman auror, impatient with the bickering.

"This way," McGonagall led them through the door to the boy's dormitory.

Kuro couldn't follow down the narrow hallway, and he was pretty sure there were spells keeping member of other houses entering, anyway. He did his best to eavesdrop from the doorway.

He heard them shuffling through cupboards and drawers for a while before speaking again. "Same as Antimonie Travers," said McGonagall. "Personal things taken, books and uniforms left behind. Do you believe the disappearances are related?'

"Of course I do," said Potter darkly. "It's my job to suspect those kinds of connections."

"No it is not," scolded McGonagall fiercely as they climbed a long spiral staircase. "Your job is to teach students and keep them safe. You quit the aurors, or have you forgotten?"

Kuro chuckled quietly to himself. He never tired of listening to McGonagall talk to Potter like a student.

"Ms. Grant, I would like your opinion on the matter."

"A connection can't be ruled out," said the auror gruffly. "We get runaways, sure, but they tend to do it on foot and into muggle cities; It's real hard to disappear in a town as small as Hogsmeade and we've never had one scarper from a moving train before. There's enough in common to be suspicious. Then again, they're the sort of kids that would run away aren't they?"

"And what do you mean by that?" McGonagall asked in an accusing tone.

"Well, you know... neither had much in the way of close relations. Both were the children of confirmed death eaters." The auror sounded dismissive. "We've seen it before, kids who think they've got it rough trying to follow in their parents' footsteps. Some of them thinking they're going to run off and become the next Voldemort. If they are being kidnapped, it looks like whoever is doing it is targeting kids who won't much be missed."

"Well if that is the case then they are very much mistaken. They shall find that attacking our most vulnerable students earns them no latitude from the law." McGonagall sounded incensed. "I expect the full power of the ministry to be used to find them."

"Of course Professor," said the auror unconvincingly. "Whatever we can spare."

Kuro had heard that phrase before when he was on the streets in Knockturn. It was probably the first thing aurors learned in training. They said it to any irate victim of a crime. Anything from an attempted break in a Gringotts, to a suspiciously missing left shoe. Kuro had seen that 'whatever they could spare' varied in direct relation to how much they cared about the crime.

Kuro heard them finishing in the room and returning. He ducked behind a sofa and waited for the procession to pass out of the common room. He was about to follow when another movement from within Ravenclaw stopped him. The boy's dormitory room door cracked open and Kuro could see Jordan Selwyn's face peering out cautiously. Kuro had not been the only eavesdropper.

Jordan shared what he'd overheard at breakfast the next morning. It made Christmas vacation very tense for the few students remaining. Most of them were the orphans from St. Brutus' many of whom were either the children of death eaters, or the children of their victims.

That divide always bubbled under the surface, but now it was carving a wide rift. The death eater's children put on varyingly brave faces, but it was clear they were all worried. They started sticking together closely. They separated only to sleep, and expressed quiet relief when they all returned safely the next morning. Some of them boasted loudly of how many friends they had and how much they'd be missed. Jordan mentioned his 'very serious' girlfriend and 'close ties' to the Lemieux family several times a day as though the kidnapper might be listening and think that enough reason to leave him alone.

Those orphaned by death eaters struggled to be sympathetic. Several arguments flared as people became suspicious that the kidnapper might be someone wronged by a dark wizard and was taking revenge on their children.

Kuro didn't know on which side he belonged. He was the creation of death eaters but his parents, if you could call them that, were most definitely their victims. For all he knew, one of them was the culprit. He knew one thing for certain, though, he wasn't going to be much missed if he disappeared. He was friendless at the moment. He thought the only people who would really miss him were Victoire and Azalea but only because they might be forced to talk to each other to complete their assignment.

Kuro had no interest in being kidnapped again. He doubted he'd have such a speedy rescue as the last time. If Kuro wanted protection, he was going to need friends. He could try to make new ones, but he like the ones he had. He was going to have to get them to make up. He resolved himself to the task, though he wasn't sure how. He was going to need help.

His first step seemed obvious. He still had two friends, of a sort. Making sure he didn't lose those was a good idea, and Christmas was coming.

He hunted down the Fat Friar, Hufflepuff's house ghost and asked him what ghosts might like to get as a gift.

"What a wonderful thought, my boy, but I need nothing at all," the friar responded jubilantly when asked. "My vows of poverty carry on even in death."

"It's not for you," Kuro said awkwardly, trying not to sound too rude. "It's for Moaning Myrtle. She seems like she could use the cheering up."

"Too true. Too true." The friar nodded vigorously. "You're a good boy for thinking of her. Well, we ghosts can't really have possessions to speak of, but we can appreciate a kind gesture. Perhaps something to decorate her stall, something that will last. And no cards or wrapping. We can't open them ourselves and it can be very depressing to be reminded of that."

Kuro thanked the Friar vigorously and went on his way. He had an idea but it would take some cunning to pull off. He went to the library, an act that Madame Pince seemed to find very suspicious. Kuro argued that it was less odd than her spending the whole christmas break in the library if she didn't expect anyone to use it. She grouchily conceded the point and allowed him entry, though she circled him like a vulture the whole time he was there.

He found what he was looking for relatively easily. He remembered it from the hours spent doing research for their Transfiguration project. There were some advanced spells in the back of one of the books. There was one about transmuting silver into saffron using simultaneous spellcasting by two wizards. There was one about reversing the blooming process and returning flowers to their base metals. And there was the one he was looking for, partial transformations to make unwilting flowers.

Sneaking into Filch's toolshed to fetch some metal was the easy part. Kuro had been to the shed once the previous year during his many detentions. Filch seemed to keep every broken remnant of hinge, tool, and pipe from hogwarts, despite the fact that any teacher there could make new ones appear from thin air. Kuro apparated out into the blowing snow late at night and let Sprig pick the lock for him. He hoped the storm would cover his tracks before anyone noticed them.

He slid inside the shed and closed the door behind him. It was even worse than he remembered. Stuff was piled everywhere. Towers of burst pipes, bent nails, rusted tools and cracked windows teetered, eager to tumble at the slightest provocation. There were whole toilets, half desks, and battered remnants of brooms. Filch even kept decorations there: faded paintings and tarnished trophies from bygone eras. Kuro carefully picked out a copper pipe in passable condition, careful not to topple the pile it was in, and apparated back to his room.

Next was the hard part. He couldn't cast the spell himself. He needed someone's help. He set himself up in the great hall with his wand, pipe, and textbook and waited for the inevitable appearance of the Avery sisters.

He made a bit of a show of ineptly casting the spell at the pipe when Azalea was in sight. Not wanting to give up the opportunity to insult Kuro, she wandered over to see what he was failing at.

"What are you trying to do?" she said, voice dripping with condescension.

"I'm trying to do this spell to make flowers that won't wilt," Kuro said, trying to look as pathetic as possible.

"Well you're doing it all wrong," she said without even looking at the spell.

"Could you show me how?" Kuro asked pleadingly.

"Why would I bother. You can't even gild a lily, why do you think you can make an unwilting copper daisy?"

Kuro had been ready for this. "It's okay, I'll just ask Victoire when she gets back."

The effect was immediate. Azalea shoved him to the side and grabbed the book from him. Kuro tried not to smirk with pleasure at his deception as she studied the spell.

With intense concentration and a complex series of wand movements, she incanted "Aeramentum asteraceae aresto."

The pipe blossomed into three elegant white and yellow flowers but retained a slight metallic sheen. Kuro applauded. "Thank you, I'd have never gotten that on my own."

Azalea looked at him for a moment like he'd grown a second head. Kuro worried that he'd overdone the gratitude. "You're welcome..." she said uncertainly before backing away and returning to Bella.

One down.

Bindal was a harder problem. Kuro couldn't remember Bindal expressing a single desire in all the time he'd spent with him, outside of casting wizard magic. Kuro wanted to give him a wand, but it was hardly likely he'd just find a spare one lying around. He thought of trying to give him some clothes, a symbol of freedom to an elf, but Bindal was a 'proper elf' and might take them as an insult. It wasn't like he could ask anyone, either. He couldn't risk exposing Bindal's fraternization with a wizard or skipping out on his duties.

Kuro was going to have to gamble that he got what he was expecting on Christmas morning.

Christmas eve was spent penning Christmas cards with the help of Meredith. She'd put off writing her own, and was keeping him company in the common room. "What do you say to friends that are mad at you?" asked Kuro as he stared at several pages of blank parchment.

"Who's mad at you?" she asked, shocked.

"Pretty much everybody," Kuro sulked.

"But you're still sending them Christmas cards?"

"Yes, of course," said Kuro. "I've been looking forward to it since last year."

Meredith smiled warmly. "I'd start with 'Merry Christmas' and go from there," she replied. Kuro thought for a few minutes while he wrote 'Merry Christmas' on three pieces of parchment as festively as he could.

After another hour, he had a pile of crumpled pages full of apologies and pleas for forgiveness and offers of penance, but they all felt wrong. In the end, he stuck with 'Merry Christmas, Love Kuro.' for each.

He and Meredith trudged through the snow to the owlry together to send their letters. It was deep enough now that Kuro had to walk in the ruts Meredith made. They were caked with snow and out of breath by the time they got back to Hufflepuff house. They left their winter cloaks by the fire to dry and went off to bed.

"Happy Christmas," said Meredith.

"Happy Christmas," replied Kuro.

Christmas morning came with much less excitement than the year prior. There were gifts at the end of his bed, but not nearly so many as his first year. There was nothing from Edward or Charlie, but there was a small package from Mary containing mechanical pencils and erasers and a notepad of paper. There was a small card inside that said only "The revolution continues!" 

Besides those he had a book of adventure stories from his caseworker, Sabine El-Asar. A package with several pairs of new socks from Miss Moody at the orphanage. The important gift he'd been counting on was also there.

It was a small white box with his name written in shimmering green ink on a little tag. It was McGonagall's gift. Meredith had told him last year that she always gave one to the students that stayed behind for the holidays. He carefully removed the tag and replaced it with a piece of parchment on which he wrote 'Bindal' in large clear letters and shoved it in his bag along with the daisies for Myrtle.

He crept out into the common room. Meredith wasn't out of bed, yet, so he had a bit of time. He crept through the empty halls to Myrtle's washroom. The school was so empty and quiet that his breathing seemed to echo down the corridors.

He pushed the door to the washroom open as quietly as he could and slid inside. "Myrtle? Bindal?" he asked.

Crack.

Bindal appeared in front of him looking suspicious. A frying pan was in one hand with sizzling bacon in it. "Why is you calling me?"

"If you weren't here, how did you hear me?" Kuro asked in surprise.

"I is listening. I is a proper elf. I is hearing when Bindal is called."

Myrtle drifted through her stall door yawning. "Why are you here?" she groaned sorrowfully.

"It's Christmas," Kuro said brightly. "I brought you presents."

Looks of utter shock and confusion swept over Bindal and Myrtle. "Why?" they asked together.

"Because it's Christmas, and you're my friends," said Kuro firmly.

He reached into his satchel and pulled out his gifts. Myrtle's eyes welled with tears as he presented her with the Daisies.

"Flowers," she sniffed "Nobody has ever brought me flowers in all the time I've been here."

"Where should I put them?" asked Kuro. "I didn't bring a vase or anything, sorry."

"Oh no, no. Lay them at the base of my toilet. Yes, there, just like that." Myrtle gazed upon them adoringly, glowing silver tears streaming down her transparent face. "It's just like a proper grave, now."

Bindal was not so readily grateful. "Is a box." he said, inspecting it suspiciously in one hand, still holding the fry pan.

"Open it," instructed Kuro.

Bindal placed it on the floor and cautiously tugged the ribbon as if it were likely to explode. As the ribbon came free the box started to unfold, then each of the sides unfolded again, then again, each time exposing packets of candy and cookies. The sweets began to stack like bricks and twist together to form shapes until the whole thing became a perfect replica of Hogwarts with toffy towers and rock candy windows and licorice brooms flying in circles around it.

Bindal looked at it in awe and horror. "What is it?" he asked.

"It's candy," said Kuro. "Try some."

Bindal was reluctant to do so until Kuro demonstrated on himself. He peeled off a strip from a toffee tower and began to chew in earnest.

Bindal followed suit, but panicked as his teeth stuck together. "Is a trap!" he squealed through a locked jaw. "I is cursed!"

Kuro laughed. "No it isn't. Just let it warm up a bit."

Bindal looked suspicious of Kuro, then surprised, then elated as his jaw freed and the flavor filled his mouth. "Is delicious. Is very delicious. Is all mine?"

"It's all yours. Happy Christmas." Kuro said gladly. "Watch out for the licorice brooms, though. They're vile. McGonagall is the only one that likes them."

Bindal burst out in tears and threw his arms around Kuro. "The Kuro monster is too kind. Bindal is not deserving kindness. Not even from a Kuro monster."

The hug was heartfelt but incautious. Kuro was having to dance and squirm to keep Bindal's hot pan from burning him. Myrtle joined in, but as a ghost, she was even worse at it. Her arms settled slightly inside Kuro, sending an icy chill coursing through his blood.

"I'm g-glad you liked your presents," Kuro chattered. "B-but I should g-get back b-before I'm m-missed."

They released Kuro and he felt warmth slowly start to return to his body. "Will I see you at the feast tonight?" Kuro asked Bindal.

"No," said Bindal plainly. He then laid a hand on his candy Hogwarts and along with it vanished with a snap.

The feast that night wasn't the joyful spectacle it had been the year before. The trappings were much the same: the table piled with all manner of muggle takeaway and plastic-wrapped cakes. Elves shouted and laughed and fought and were generally unruly in the most polite and deferential manner possible. The few staff who remained at the school over the holidays drank and laughed together while the students made strange conversation with the elves.

The difference, this year, was Kuro. The elves regarded him as a monster in their midst. They eyed him with loathing as he entered and none would come within a few metres of him. As he moved through the room, it was like a bubble had formed around him that no elf could penetrate.

He could hardly blame them. Perhaps their friends had died in the research used to create him, perhaps their family. What could he say? Should he apologize for existing? He did his best to just stay out of their way and not ruin their feast any more than he had to. As he quietly ate his fried chicken and curry noodles, he couldn't help but notice something missing at the party. There were no elf children at the feast. All the elves there looked old, their skin taut and dry. There were none so tiny as Bindal with rumpled extra skin and outsized hands and feet.

Kuro wondered if the elf parents kept the children away because of the gifts. McGonagall provided elves the option of being freed if they wanted it at Christmas. Each had a gift with clothes inside for them which would free them from the curse that bound them in servitude. A lot of elves, like Bindal, thought proper elves shouldn't be free. Maybe they were worried their children wouldn't make the choice their parents thought was right.

He thought this was unfair, the adults having a feast while the kids were stuck somewhere else. Kuro filled his bag with muggle treats for Bindal to share with the other elf kids, made his excuses and left the feast early.

He needed a good night sleep, anyway. The easy part was done. Tomorrow he would have to start the hard work of reclaiming his human friends.


	19. Quidditch

Kuro had only a few days to prepare for his friends' return. He thought the easiest one to reconcile with would probably be Edward. He was mostly mad at Kuro for going out with Victoire. Breaking up with her would probably mend the fence. The challenge was that they had never been dating in the first place. Convincing Edward that they had actually broken up would be near impossible, since he thought Kuro had been lying about their relationship for months.

He doubted that Victoire would be so generous as to play along, so he had to do something on his own. He took out the stacks of notes from transfiguration class and began to trace letters. It took nearly two days of failed attempts but he finally managed to forge a believable break-up letter. He just had to leave it out where Edward would see it.

It worked almost exactly as planned. Kuro made sure he was out of the room when Edward returned in the new year. He waited what he hoped was an appropriate amount of time for Edward to get curious and read the letter lying open on his bed. Then he shuffled in looking as forlorn as possible, ready to lament his broken heart and tell Edward he'd been right all along.

He had planned to act surprised at seeing Edward reading the letter, but that turned into a real gasp when he saw it in Shaun Cassidy's hands instead. "Victoire dumped you? Rough beats, Kuro."

Edward's hair turned a satisfied color of orange when he heard the news, but rapidly turned to a mangy wolfish mane as Shaun continued.

"Does that mean she's single again? Is it cool with you if I have a shot at her?" he said with absurd bravado.

It was fine with Kuro, of course, but not so much with Edward. Oliver and Kuro had to pull Edward, snarling and growling off of Shaun.

Kuro stood outside with Edward in a blustering blizzard while he cooled off enough to face Shaun again. He figured he should take another run at apologizing. "Look I'm sorry I went out with her behind your back..."

"I know you weren't going out," interrupted Edward.

"You do?" said Kuro, confused.

"We had a big row at Christmas dinner about it. Uncle Harry was getting on her case about being too young to date and I was sort of agreeing."

Kuro had failed to consider the possibility that they'd see each other over the holidays. He felt stupid, as he'd heard of the expansive Weasley family dinners before. "So what happened."

"Victoire screamed at us. She yelled at me for acting like a lousy big brother when we're not even related and for Uncle Harry for treating her like a glass doll in class. Then she threw a chair at him."

"Victoire threw a chair at Harry Potter?" Kuro laughed. "I think I'm starting to actually like her."

Edward gave him a sour look before continuing. "Then aunt Hermione lectured me for like five hours on minding my own business and feminism and patriarchy."

"What are those?"

"Third-year classes, I think. I wasn't really listening."

"Are you okay to go inside?" Kuro asked hopefully. He had not put on a winter cloak before going out.

As they walked through the halls, leaving wet footprints Kuro knew would infuriate Filch, a thought occurred to Edward. "Where did you get that breakup letter."

"I faked it," said Kuro honestly.

"Why?"

"You guys weren't believing me when I told you the truth, I thought I would try lying." They paused at their bedroom door. "You sure you're not going to bite off Shaun's head."

"Not over Victoire, no." He sounded like he was convincing himself. "She can take care of herself, right?"

Kuro thought back to her assault on him in the bathroom. "More than you know," he answered.

Charlie was going to be a tougher nut to crack. He thought that he'd try just apologizing, it had worked before. Myrtle advised against it, though. She thought that if he apologized, it would be admitting guilt. Then Charlie would hold it over him and use it against him.

"Better to give her the silent treatment," she said wisely. "Just sit near her and refuse to speak to her or look at her. Face the other direction if possible. Looking like you're wounded helps too.

Kuro wasn't sure about this plan. "That sounds like what my cat does when I stay out too long or give her food she doesn't like."

"And how does that make you feel?" Myrtle posed knowingly.

"Super guilty," Kuro admitted.

It turned into a battle of wills very quickly. Kuro discovered at breakfast the next day that Charlie was trying the same thing on him. She sat right next to him but refused to acknowledge he even existed. This continued in every class they shared. Both of them pointedly ignoring the other. Edward, for his part, got up and left whenever Charlie sat too close.

It was a painful week as each waited for the other to crack. It didn't help that others had noticed what was happening. Jennifer Tanaka kept trying to engage both of them in conversation just to make their lives more difficult and Shaun Cassidy kept asking them to ask the other to pass him things.

By Friday, Kuro was just about ready to burst. He might have made it through the day had Professor Longbottom not assigned them to the same pot of adhesive milkweed. They were just meant to be seeding the pods, but their plant was particularly juicy and they both ended up badly glued to the pot.

They weren't the only students that got stuck to something, but Longbottom ran out of solvent before he got to them. He insisted that the glue would wear off and they shouldn't be late for their next class. After three hours of being stuck together and unable to tell the other which way they were going to go Kuro's resolve was crumbling and his bladder was filling.

"Look, this is ridiculous," said Kuro. "Can we just smash the pot?"

"Ha! You lost," announced Charlie. She nearly threw Kuro to the floor as she adopted a victory pose.

"I don't care," said Kuro. "I don't care about winning. I just want to be friends again. Can we just eat cakes and punch each other until we feel better."

Charlie apparently found this deeply moving. She hugged him forcefully, nearly breaking his arm in the process.

"Charlie!" he said through gritted teeth. "Still glued to the pot."

"Oh my goodness! Sorry!" she said releasing him quickly.

"You apologized first," Kuro said smugly. "Does that mean I win?"

Charlie wound up and punched him, but it was feeble and awkward with her free left hand.

"You punch like Edward," Kuro laughed and tackled her, failing entirely to knock her over.

Charlie cackled mercilessly at Kuro's wholly ineffective attempt to topple her. She twisted him around by the ceramic pot and got him in a headlock. He wriggled free and leaped onto her back, dangling around her neck like a cape.

They fought like this until they were too tired to struggle and laughing too hard to breath.

"You said something about cakes?" said Charlie after settling her giggles enough to speak.

"In my bag," choked out Kuro. "Leftovers from Christmas. Muggle fare."

"Ooohhh, got any of those yellow ones?"

They lay on the floor in a hallway shoving individually wrapped treats in their mouths and giggling intermittently.

"The ball was pretty fun," Charlie said eventually while chomping on something pink and coconut covered.

"What? No! It was dreadful!" Kuro said, scandalized. "Everything went horribly wrong."

"But before that," said Charlie, finding a silver lining. "It was pretty great. I mean, did you see some of those dresses?"

"If you enjoyed yourself so much, why haven't you been talking to me?"

Charlie's smile faded to a pout. "Because you told Mary about my disguise."

"Mary figured it out herself," corrected Kuro. "She knows you a lot better than you give her credit for. What's up with you two anyway?"

"You should ask her if you're going to take her side." She got up and started to storm off, but only made it two steps before remembering she was still attached to Kuro.

"I'm not taking her side. I don't even know what the sides are. She won't tell me either."

Charlie slumped with a look of sadness on her face that made Kuro's heart ache. "She hates me," she said plainly.

"I'm sorry," said Kuro, not sure what else he could do. "Can I tell you a secret, Charlie?"

The offer perked her up considerably. "Of course," she said in an eager whisper.

"You know the rain at the ball?"

"Yeah?"

"That was me."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah."

"Wicked."

After that Charlie was pretty much back to her old self with Kuro. He still had the hard problem of getting the others to reconcile. He didn't even know if it was going to be possible. They had dug their trenches pretty deep.

His first glimmer of hope came at Charlie's first quidditch game. It wasn't the first Hufflepuff quidditch game, they'd already played Ravenclaw and Gryffindor. Charlie didn't get to play in those, though. She was a second backup chaser. She would only be in the air if two of the others were injured. However, Hufflepuff had lost theirs first two games so badly they no chance at winning the cup, so they were letting the backup players play in their final match against Slytherin

Kuro cheered for Charlie as she trudged out into the snow-covered field, yellow robes shining brightly in the February sun.

The game, itself was boring. Without Charlie's bombastic enthusiasm and Mary's derisive commentary, quidditch wasn't much more than watching disoriented mayflies chase each other about. He could hardly follow the game himself. He relied on the commentary of Wendel Smudge in the announcer's booth to sort out what was going on. He spent most of the game just trying to keep warm. He also got a chance to watch Mary.

He'd hoped that she'd join them if Charlie wasn't around, but she was standing with Jordan and some of her Transfiguration club friends, Marcelle and Hannah, all Ravenclaws. Despite Hannah and Marcelle being deep in conversation the entire time and being close to her boyfriend, Mary paid them no attention. Her eyes were fixed on the sky and she gripped the bench tightly as if in worry.

Kuro was nearly knocked off his seat fifteen minutes into the game when Edward stood suddenly then exploded with loud whoops and cheers. "Cook has scored!" roared Wendel over the loudspeaker moments later. "Charlotte Cook of Hufflepuff has scored. That's ten points to Hufflepuff! The score is Hufflepuff twenty, Slytherin ninety."

It seemed that Edward had, at least for the moment, forgotten his anger with Charlie. Mary, too, looked awfully pleased for someone that hated Charlie, proud even.

He started plotting ways to get them to make up, but some commotion in the sky pulled Kuro's attention back to the game. The Slytherin seeker shot into action heading high and out of the regular play area. The Hufflepuff seeker saw the action and tore after her.

Wendel Smudge in the announcer's booth sprang to life, "Kalliste Nott has spotted the snitch!" he roared. "Is it a bluff? No, she's really going for it. Henrietta Holtzman is in hot pursuit but has a lot of air to cover if she's going to have a shot at a capture."

The crowd was on its feet and rushing to find a vantage point to see the chase which was quickly heading out of view. Kuro could see nothing. Even standing on a bench he couldn't see over the heads of the the crowd clustering at the back of the stands.

The snitch wasn't bound by the borders of the play field and neither were the seekers. One legendary game had ended in the library. This one was headed for the forest. Wendel continued his commentary with building excitement "That snitch is really on a tear. It looks like Nott is really struggling to keep pace. They're clear of school grounds now, shot straight over the boundary wall. Holtzman is closing but will that burst of speed be enough? Nott is diving. Holtzman is right behind her, now. They're through the trees, we've lost sight of them. It's going to be trouble if a spider swallows that snitch."

The crowd collectively held its breath as they lost sight of the seekers in the woods. Kuro, not being able to see at all was watching the other stands. The teachers were looking concerned and starting to fret. Madame Hooch was blowing her whistle to stop the game.

"It's Holtzman!" shouted Wendel over the loudspeaker. "Henrietta Holtzman has the snitch. Wait. Something isn't right. She's waving her arms she's not holding the snitch, she's holding another broom. Where is Kalliste Nott?"

Panic was starting to spread through the students and several teachers shot off towards the forest on brooms, Potter in the lead followed closely by Madame Hooch. McGonagall took over the loudspeaker. "Everyone stay calm and in your seats," she commanded. Nobody is to move. Quidditch players. Land immediately. Meredith Thrump, that includes you."

It was a long cold wait with a lot of quiet speculation as the teachers searched and rumor circulated. After an hour, it was clear that Kalliste was definitely gone. Versions of Henrietta's story began to filter in from different directions. She was only a second or two behind Kalliste through the forest canopy, but Kalliste was already gone by the time she cleared the leaves. She saw the empty broom hit the ground.

The first two disappearances had been easy enough to dismiss as runaways. Leonard and Antimonie weren't popular or very social. Kalliste, though, was on the Slytherin quidditch team, had many friends and a steady boyfriend. All of whom were now being questioned very thoroughly.

Theories about curses and dark wizards and serial kidnappers ran rampant as everyone was slowly walked up to the castle, each being counted several times on the way. One thing was certain, the pattern of who was being taken held true. All of them had parents that had been sent to Azkaban Prison.

More security measures were put in place to protect the students. Aurors were brought in to patrol the school and grounds. They did nothing to ease Kuro's growing fears. He was more afraid of them than the kidnapper.

Students weren't allowed outside the building without an escort from a teacher, though the terrible winter weather meant that rule wasn't much of an imposition. And all flying was forbidden, including for quidditch. This was the least popular of the new rules.

Also, the magical barrier was made taller and closer to the school. They could hear it hissing just outside the stables during Care of Magical Creatures. Evelyn wished loudly that it had been moved a few meters farther. She would have been happy to be in a warm, clean classroom with books and quills and far away from what she called a "truculent mockery of a proper unicorn."

Her charge had never warmed to her and refused to even eat the food that Evelyn put in its trough. Evelyn naturally took this as a failing on the part of the unicorn. She boasted that she was far better suited to what she called a "proper academic environment," and this manual labor was better left to "the help."

She also took it upon herself to share her thoughts on the missing students. "It's to be expected, really. Bad breeding will always out," she said haughtily. "They've seen that dark wizards aren't welcome here and have run away. Honestly, I'm shocked they stayed as long as they did. I expect a mass exodus of undesirables smart enough to follow their examples." She glanced disdainfully at Kuro as she said this. "I'm not surprised that some haven't gotten the message, though."

Defence Against the Dark arts was also getting worse. Potter's refrain of "Constant vigilance," was getting repeated so often Kuro heard it in his sleep. Potter was also asking students to report strange or suspicious behavior. "Nothing too small. Nothing too trivial. Anything or anyone acting odd could be suspect," he said.

He had them learning a variety of spells to use in the case of a kidnapping attempt: a flare charm, an alarm spell, and a grease spell to make them very hard to hold on to, none of which Kuro imagined would be any use if a half-decent wizard tried to capture one of them. They were also redoubling their efforts with the patronus charm despite it being of no real use against anything that might kidnap someone. It was for dementors, shades, lethifolds, and spirits. None of them were in the habit of capturing children.

He was glad to have Bindal and Myrtle to worry to. Neither were very sympathetic. Myrtle was a little too eager at the possibility of Kuro being killed by a maniac so that he might stay with her as a ghost. Bindal just dismissed his fears saying, "nobody is wanting to kidnap a Kuro monster," as though the idea that he might be of any value was laughable. At least they weren't fighting with each other like his other friends.

Unfortunately their nights together were getting fewer and farther between. With quidditch cancelled, Charlie was around much more often. Kuro couldn't complain about that, but it made it much harder to sneak away. He was having to get Bindal to fetch him, apparating to and from the hufflepuff washroom late at night.

Bindal was having trouble too. His duties were keeping him away more often and he was often tired and bothered when he arrived. When Kuro asked, Bindal just shook his head, rolled his eyes and said "Wizardses" in a weary tone.

He didn't need to say much more. Kuro knew how the other students treated the school. They mostly assumed it was maintained by magic. It must be endless work for the elves to keep everyone fed and clean.

Late one night, Kuro was tackled and practically kidnapped from his dorm by Bindal. He apparated them both to the washroom without warning.

Bindal's face was twisted and his eye nearly shut as his floppy cheeks were raised to meet his droopy eyebrows. His crooked teeth were bared menacingly, and his large batlike ears were quivering. It took Kuro an embarrassingly long time to realize that Bindal was smiling.

"Kuro Monster come!" he chirped excitedly. "You is watching. You is seeing."

"What's going on?" he whispered to Myrtle, who was hovering sullenly nearby.

"I shouldn't say," she moaned. "It's his surprise. People were always ruining my surprises when I was alive. It was horrible."

Kuro waited patiently while Bindal readied himself. The little elf was very excited. He kept trying to settle himself enough to do whatever he was doing, but he kept getting giddy and dancing like the floor was burning his feet. Finally he got ahold of his body and, grinning madly, announced "Expecto Patronum!"

A gout of silver smoke burst from his palm and coalesced into a small shape which began to flutter around the room. It was no bigger than a pigeon, had a long neck and tail and batlike wings. "It's a dragon!" exclaimed Kuro.

"Yes!" said Bindal proudly as he guided the gleaming silver form around the room.

"You didn't even use a wand. That's amazing." Kuro congratulated Bindal.

"Is elf magic. Is not needing wands," Bindal explained. He was captivated by his own creation. He watched his own patronus with something approaching reverence.

"How did you do it?" asked Kuro. "What was your happy memory?"

"Pepperimps!" said Bindal, beaming. "They is the bestest candy you has given me."

Kuro wondered at the unbridled joy his elven friend could find in a simple sweet. He wondered if he was making it too difficult for himself.

The tiny fluttering dragon reminded him of something he had read months ago when he was trying to learn about elves. He scavenged through his book bag and pulled out his History of Magic text. He leafed vigorously through it, trying to recall where he had read it.

"Here it is!" he said loudly enough to make Bindal jump. His patronus popped like a balloon.

"What is here?" asked Bindal checking the surroundings carefully.

"Elf history," said Kuro excitedly. He began to read. "The defeat of the Elven king's great silver dragon at the battle of Elfendale in what is now in the muggle country of Egypt is considered by many the turning point in the emancipation of wizards from the tyrannical rule of the Elvane."

Kuro slammed the book closed. "I think that dragon was a patronus. You have the same one. You might be descended from the ancient elf king. Bindal, you might be royalty."

Bindal first had a look of confusion, which slowly shifted to shock, then pride. "Maybe I is," he said haughtily.

They spent a good long while watching Bindal's little dragon flutter around. Kuro didn't even bother practicing his own magic. He did want to ask Myrtle for advice again, though.

"Myrtle," he said, "Charlie thinks Mary hates her. I don't think it's true, but I can never get Mary alone to talk to her. She'd always off with her boyfriend Jordan Selwyn."

Myrtle tapped her chin, thinking deeply. Before she could form an answer, though, Bindal cut in. "Is not," he said plainly as though it were a commonly known fact.

"What?" asked Kuro.

"Mary Akinwande is not always being off with the Jordan Selwyn," he said as if Kuro were quite silly for not knowing that. "Mary Akinwande is many times alone in dungeons. Jordan Selwyn is many times not with her."

"How do you know?" asked Kuro.

"I is seeing," replied Bindal as though it should have been obvious.

"Are elves spying on all of the students at Hogwarts?"

Bindal laughed dismissively. "Not all," he said like it had been a ridiculous question.

Now that he thought about it, the elves did seem to know where he sat at dinner and where he put his dirty clothes. It made him very suddenly self-conscious about going to the toilet. Kuro wasn't sure why he found this so disquieting. Somehow the idea that they were selective in who they watched made it seem worse.

He wanted to ask more, but a sound outside silenced them. "Who's in there?" said a gruff voice. It was one of the patrolling aurors. They had been too noisy.

Kuro looked to Myrtle who gave him a nod before both he and Bindal disapparated. She would cover for them, and that auror had no idea what he was in for trespassing in her washroom.


	20. Dementor in the Dungeon

Bindal's comments about Mary had made Kuro curious. If she wasn't spending all of her time with Jordan, what was she doing? Kuro resolved to find out.

After class the next day, he slipped away from Charlie and tailed Mary. It wasn't very difficult. Kuro had lots of practice not being noticed and Mary wasn't being particularly observant. She just went to the library, leaving only to eat dinner. Jordan did meet her there, but they had only a short, whispered conversation before he stormed off looking very unhappy.

The next day was much the same, and the day after. She was spending a lot of time alone and she didn't look much like she was enjoying it. At first, he thought she might be doing homework, but none of the books she was reading looked familiar. He had to wait till after she left for transfiguration club one night to see what she'd been reading.

He had expected mostly stuff on transfiguration, but they were all books about the patronus charm. Kuro hadn't realized how much not being able to cast a patronus was bothering her. She must be obsessed with it to be spending all her free time doing research.

He flipped open a book to an earmarked page. "The shape the patronus takes is difficult to predict. It is not dictated by the wizard casting the charm, but is reflective of some aspect of their character. In most instances, the patronus is unchanged and unchangeable for the duration of a wizard's life, but some exceptions have been noted, particularly in instances of trauma."

It went on like that for pages. Kuro couldn't understand how Mary had found at least seven volumes written on a topic that could be pretty much covered in a couple sentences. 'Think happy thoughts. Point wand. Say "Expecto Patronum."' That was it. Bindal didn't even need the wand part.

Kuro felt that he'd solved what Mary was doing with her time, but not what to do about it. She looked sad and lonely, and she was fighting with Jordan pretty much every time he saw them together.

Saturday brought new mystery. Kuro saw her leave the dining hall followed by Jordan, but she went in the wrong direction for either the library or Hufflepuff house. He thought it was probably very rude to follow her, but his curiosity was getting the better of him. He made his excuses and left.

He didn't have to follow for very long before he saw Jordan catch her up. "Mary, wait" he said assertively. "Where are you going?"

"None of your business," Mary snapped.

Their conversation then became much more hushed but they were distracted enough by each other that Kuro could creep up beside a display case full of confusing timepieces and listen.

"Just talk to me," said Jordan in a soothing tone that he seemed to be straining to keep steady. "I can help you." He moved to put an arm around her.

"I don't want your help," she said firmly, shaking off his arm. "Just leave me alone."

"You don't mean that," he said as if it were an instruction. "You're just upset."

"I bloody well am." Mary looked ready to clock the larger boy. "So shove off."

"You'd be sad if I were gone," he said like a threat.

Mary's angry posture weakened a bit at this comment. She looked resigned but still agitated. Kuro wished people would explain themselves better when he was eavesdropping.

"You're supposed to be my girlfriend," said Jordan. "You could act like it a little more."

"You could make it a bit easier," Mary grumbled.

"You'll come to transfiguration club with me this afternoon, right?"

Mary sighed, "yes, of course."

Jordan hugged Mary affectionately and kissed her on the cheek. Mary did not return the gesture. "Thanks, sweetie," he said warmly before releasing her.

Once freed of Jordan, Mary walked briskly down the hall. It was hard for Kuro to keep pace without seeming suspicious. He had to guess at where she was going a couple of times and duck down side passages to catch her up.

Mary reached a staircase to the dungeons and her pace changed considerably. She looked like a kid in the Wizard Wheezes shop in Diagon Alley that is about to get caught shoplifting, moving in an artificially casual way, looking excessively nonchalant, and often checking over her shoulder. It was amateur at best, thought Kuro. She'd make a terrible thief.

Kuro stalked her through the dungeons, enjoying it much more now that she was trying to hide her trail. Curiosity flooded out the guilt at spying on his friend, and the challenge of hunting her undetected washed away any other reservations he might have had.

He followed her through winding passages of the dungeons beneath Hogwarts. She knew them well. She must have walked this path many times. She made her way to a small cell at the end of a dark and dusty corridor. Kuro could see the trail she had cleared in the dirt visiting this room. She entered and closed the heavy door behind her.

The door was solid but it had a small slot at the bottom, presumably for sliding food to prisoners once upon a time when this castle was something very much other than a school.

Kuro approached, quieter than a cockroach. He peered under the door at his strangely behaving friend. He could see her, most of her anyway. She was calming herself, readying herself for something. She smiled softly, wand in hand and began to cast.

"Expecto patronum," she whispered.

Kuro couldn't help but be impressed by his friend's dedication. He couldn't think of anything that he would care about enough to spend every night and his whole Saturday morning studying and practicing. He was about to move and leave her be when something amazing happened.

Her steady stream of silver smoke coalesced into a vibrant form. It was a large, fat, snarling weasel like thing with clear dark stripes running back over its eyes. Kuro almost forgot himself and applauded at Mary's success. He was so happy for her and felt very lucky to see her first success. He pressed his face up to the slot under the door so he could see her reaction.

She looked angry. She scowled and looked terrifying in the vibrant glow of her patronus. She shook her wand and the patronus faded. There was a long pause. Kuro could hear her steadying her breath and then repeating "Expecto patronum."

Again, the badger flared into life, filling the cell with a bright, hopeful light. She cursed with frustration as she ran up and kicked the luminous badger. It burst into glowing motes which faded to nothing, leaving the cell dark again.

It took four more castings before Kuro could understand what he was seeing. It was obvious once it occurred to him. She didn't like her patronus. She bemoaned her boring, ordinary muggleness all the time. Maybe that's why she wasn't getting along with Charlie: she was always going on about her cool wizard farm and flashing her unicorn patronus around.

It was ridiculous, of course. Mary was brilliant, and how could she possibly be jealous of anyone's patronus. But maybe she didn't know. She was muggleborn, maybe she didn't understand what it meant, or how impressive and special it was.

Kuro had a plan. Charlie just to see Mary's patronus to understand why mary was so upset. It would take a fair bit of guile, but he was confident he could make it work.

Minutes later he was in the library pulling out the books he had read when learning about his bowtruckle. He flipped quickly through them trying to find something he half remembered skipping over. He almost missed it, the entry was so short. "Domesticating boggarts, a practical exploration."

He poured over it. He was right in thinking that they were harmless. They were cowardly and shy creatures that lived in small dark spaces, feeding off of the dust that accumulated in corners, pocket lint, and cobwebs. They would make for excellent household helpers if it weren't for their unhelpful habit of turning into terrifying visions. Fortunately, it was exactly that feature he wanted to take advantage of.

He spent the day gathering lint and cobwebs and waited until very late that night, when the castle was asleep to enact the first part of his plan.

He crept from Hufflepuff house, avoiding patrolling aurors as he slid into the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. He set Sprig about picking the lock on the cabinet at the back. With luck, it would be months before Potter noticed the boggart missing.

Sprig opened the lock with ease and disappointment at the lack of grubs to be found inside. Kuro set down his bag by the cabinet, the drawer inside he had prepared for the boggart was ready with its tempting collection of dust, lint, and cobwebs.

Kuro moved to the back of the room and with a wave of his hand, opened the cabinet. Kuro was well hidden so the boggart had nobody to frighten. He could see it hesitantly probing out into the darkened room, little more than liquid shadow. In time it found the bag with its open drawer and slid inside. Kuro dashed up, shut the drawer, closed his bag, locked the cabinet and snuck back to his bed.

The next week went by agonizingly slowly. He was impatient to see his plan through, but he needed to wait till the next Saturday, when he hoped that Mary would be back in the dungeons casting her patronus.

He did get some distraction by attempting to tame the boggart, though. The first few times he opened the drawer to add a new rag covered in cobwebs, he found his master's old wand. Kuro felt silly for being afraid to even put his hand into the drawer. It was just a stick. It couldn't hurt him anymore. It wasn't even the real thing. Even still, it felt like his heart stopped beating while he fed the creature.

It quickly realized that Kuro wasn't being frightened off by the wand and started trying other things. It burst from his bag as a dementor, as a giant spider, and as Harry Potter, but Kuro had learned to just close his eyes and offer a handful of lint. By the end of the week he had it eating out of his hand. It was an odd sensation, like being licked by the shadow cast by a flickering oil lamp.

Kuro watched Mary at breakfast on Saturday morning. She left in the same way she had the previous week. He gave her a few minutes head start before turning to Charlie. "Want to play hide and seek in the dungeons?"

"Do I?" she replied enthusiastically. "We haven't done that all year."

Kuro, with a glimmer of optimism that he might get all of his friends back together in one shot, turned to Edward. "How about you?"

Edward and Charlie locked eyes across the breakfast table for a moment, both looking sour. "Thanks, I'm busy," he said.

Kuro was disappointed, but not surprised. "One thing at a time," he told himself.

He and Charlie skipped merrily to the dark chill of the dungeons. He nudged their path gently towards where Mary had been the week before. "No magic?" he asked before starting to count while Charlie hid.

"No magic." she agreed.

That was a good thing, since he had already stolen her wand out of her pocket on their way down.

It took a couple of rounds of actual play before he heard her go off in the correct direction. He let her get a decent distance away before stalking after her.

Charlie tried every door in the hallway, but found them locked. Of course they were, sprig had locked them the night before. Kuro was feeling extremely clever as Charlie tried the last door in the line, the one that Mary frequented, and found it unlocked. She pulled it open and was most of the way inside before he heard Mary's angry voice say "What are you doing here?"

Kuro wasn't going to give them a chance to fight. With a wave of his hand he slammed it closed behind Charlie. Dashing up, he pulled open the boggart's drawer in his bag and pressed it against the slot under the door.

He couldn't see, but it sounded like everything was going according to plan. The rattling breath of a dementor hissed out as the boggart took a form that would terrify both occupants of the room.

"My wand, where's my wand?" Charlie sputtered. Kuro felt a small pang of guilt for manipulating his friends into this situation, but his efforts were rewarded a moment later.

"Expecto patronum!" Mary practically shouted it. Brilliant light burst out through the cracks around the door and Kuro felt the boggart retreat rapidly back into his satchel. "Sorry about that," he thought as he closed the drawer. He would have to find some extra cobwebs for the poor thing tonight.

Everything had gone perfectly. Now he just had to wait. He listened at the door, ready to burst in and pretend to find Charlie whenever the moment called for it.

"What was that?" asked Charlie.

"A dementor, I think," replied Mary, sounding rattled.

"No, I mean your patronus." Charlie's voice was colder than Kuro had expected.

"It's nothing," said Mary defensively.

"That was a bloody badger," accused Charlie. "Since when have you been able to make a patronus?"

"A while," Mary sounded defensive, ashamed.

"Are you just faking it in class? Don't you want people to see?"

"What, that all I can make is a stupid ugly badger?" Mary snapped. "No I don't. I don't want to be a vicious, rubbish-eating pest."

Kuro could almost hear Charlie rolling her eyes. "You dumb muggle..."

That might not have been the right way to start. Mary exploded, cutting off Charlie before she had a chance to finish. "Yeah! That's all I am, a dumb muggle. It's all I'll ever be. I've been trying to change it all year and it always comes out the same."

"You're trying to change it?" Charlie said in bemusement. "Of all the stupid..."

"What would you know about it? You're a bloody unicorn without even trying."

"Now I'm a unicorn princess am I?" Charlie roared. "What happened to abomination? What happened to freak?"

Kuro listened in shock and confusion. He had no idea what Charlie was on about.

"It's not natural," said Mary.

"I'm a witch," retorted Charlie. "I do magic. What do I care what's natural."

"Of course, you're a proper witch. You can just do whatever you want. Everything is so easy for you."

"You think things are easy for me? You think everyone else is being nice to me since you tattled? You're not the only one that hasn't been talking to me. I'm lucky I'm still allowed to sleep in my own bed."

Mary failed to have a cutting response to that. "I didn't know," she said quietly after a long pause.

"Of course you didn't," yelled Charlie. "You were too busy ignoring me and hanging out with your stupid boyfriend. Why? Just because I like girls better than boys? You were supposed to be my friend. Aren't I good enough? Aren't I worthy of you? A badger! A bloody badger!" she shouted in conclusion before throwing open the cell door to storm out.

"Found you," said Kuro weakly.

Charlie was a tempest after that, whipping from table-flipping fury to inconsolable sadness, all the while grumbling that she didn't care what a stupid muggle thought.

Kuro gave up on comforting her after two days and turned his attention to getting Mary to apologize.

He sat next to her in Care of Magical Creatures and glared at her until she couldn't ignore him anymore. "What?" she snarled.

"Why are you mad at Charlie?" Kuro demanded.

"I already told you, it's none of your business. Go back to hanging out with her and leave me alone"

"No," said Kuro. "You're my friend. You stuck with me last year when nobody else would. I'm not giving you up just because you're having a fight. Now tell me what's wrong or I'll sick Sprig on you." Kuro held up his bowtruckle menacingly.

"She's gay," said Mary quietly, refusing to make eye contact with Kuro.

"Is that bad?" asked Kuro.

"It's supposed to be," Mary didn't seem to be convinced herself. "But so is being a witch."

She stared quietly at her flying monkey for a few moments before it all started to come spilling out. "It's just so hard, Kuro. Everything I know is wrong. And I try to be like you guys but you're all so bloody... remarkable. I'm just ordinary. I don't belong here. I'm not special or anything and she's just so brilliant at everything. She doesn't even have to try and she gets a bloody unicorn patronus and to play on the quidditch team and she's confident and fun and blonde and good at magic and I just want to be like her, but I can't. I'm nothing like her at all. I thought maybe I could be something special if I were an animagus, but I'm just a stupid badger."

"You really don't think you're special?" Kuro scowled at his foolish friend. "In all the books you read about patronuses, didn't you ever look up badgers?"

"No, why would I?" Mary grumbled. "They're stupid. They've ruined the garden of every house I've lived in and mess up our bins. They're dirty and smelly and they bite. Wait, how do you know about those books?"

"I'm very sneaky," said Kuro. "And you are very wrong. You're brilliant. You're smarter and tougher than the rest of us put together."

"You're just being nice."

"You're special, you just don't want to admit it. I'll prove it to you."

"What are you going to do?" Mary looked worried that Kuro might do something mad, but all he did was raise his hand.

"Professor Hagrid," he said loudly. "I don't get the house animals. Slytherin's being a snake kind of makes sense, but why is Gryffindor's a lion and not a gryffin? And why is Ravenclaw's an eagle and not a raven?"

Most of the class laughed, as he knew they would. It was trivially common knowledge in the wizarding world. Even he knew and he didn't exactly have a thorough education.

"I'm surprised you don't know," answered Hagrid jovially. "Well, I guess not everyone collects chocolate frog cards. It's their patronuses. Godric Gryffindor's was a lion, Rowena Ravenclaw's was a golden eagle, Salizar Slytherin's was an adder, and Helga Hufflepuff's was a big ol' badger."

Kuro was trying to keep an eye on Mary's expression. She looked a little surprised at the news. "Is there anything special about them?" asked Kuro, urging Hagrid to tell more.

"Well, now, every patronus is special. No two are quite alike."

It was a frustratingly Hagridish answer. "What if someone had the same patronus as one of them?" he probed.

"Oh, wizards would make quite a fuss," said Hagrid. "Patronuses often run in families, and folks put a lot of stock in what they say about a person. "

Kuro had successfully piqued Mary's interest. "I bet it happens all the time, though, right?" she asked, dismissively.

"No, not at all," answered Hagrid. "They're really quite rare. I mean every term we have some kid that patronums up a snake and think's they're the next heir of Slytherin, but that's just cause they can't tell apart a common grass snake from an adder. I heard of some poor bloke in Sudan that was supposed to have a lion patronus, but so many English wizards went to bother him about it, he left the country. No, the last one I'm sure of was Dylis Derwent, she had a golden eagle patronus. I suppose the fuss about it all might have some sense. She did end up being a headmistress here a couple hundred years ago."

"What about Hufflepuff?" demanded Jennifer Tanaka. Kuro was thankful that the story had drawn others in to do his work for him.

"What, a badger?" said Hagrid. "I've not heard of one never. Oh, I'd like to though. I were a Hufflepuff myself back in the day. Love me a good badger. Tough as nails, they are, and the loyalest little things you'll ever meet. They'll fight till their last breath for one of their own. Had me a pet badger once. Burrowed me a whole cellar in her day." Hagrid wiped a tear from his eye. "I miss old Esmeralda."

Kuro couldn't have hoped for a better answer. He looked to Mary who stared back at Kuro in shock. "That's what Charlie was trying to tell you in the dungeon." Mary said nothing. She just sat, looking ashamed.

Kuro said quietly. "That's why she was so upset when she found out what your patronus was. Badgers are supposed to be loyal."

"I miss you Mary," said Kuro as he collected Sprig and packed his things. "We all do."


	21. Travel Bag

That night, Kuro told himself he was done meddling. None of his plans to get his friends back together had worked properly. They were talking to him, and that was enough. Their problems with each other were their problems.

He told himself this even as he was breaking into Filch's junk shed for the second time. He had a plan to make Victoire and Azalea get along. It wasn't meddling, he assured himself. He was being completely honest with them. There was no clever deception or guile, it was just a school project.

The full moon illuminated the piles of confiscated brooms, rusting tools, old trophies and broken plumbing that cluttered the creaky little shack. Kuro rooted through the piles to find appropriate pieces of metal for their group project

Kuro had convinced the girls that it would be more impressive if they could hand in examples of the spells with the report. Handing in a nice bouquet of transfigured flowers would show off their skills. What Kuro hadn't mentioned is that he had quietly worked in the spell he had found for transfiguring silver into saffron that needed two wizards to work together.

Of course Kuro was of no actual use in casting the spells. He'd barely been able to gild a lily, let alone turn a hunk of metal into a flower. His job was to get the materials for the girls to work on. It's not meddling,' he told himself again. 'And even if it is, it can't make anything worse.'

He started tossing what seemed like good sized chunks of metal into his bag: a rusty iron trowel, a length of copper pipe, the gold shield off an old award to someone named Tom Riddle, a broken brass candelabra, and a silver cup off a forgotten trophy.

He was just about finished when he heard footsteps approaching. It was unusual for someone to be out on the grounds so late at night. He feared that a patrolling auror might have caught his scent. He peeked through the small window but the approaching people did not look like aurors. They looked like students.

They approached looking wary. "Are you sure they're in here?" asked the first in a whisper. "Maybe we should go back."

"Stop being such a Hufflepuff, Jordan." said the other. "You were all fired up a few minutes ago. Chickening out now?" She wasn't making as much of an effort to be quiet. It sounded like Bella.

Kuro ducked under a bench piled with doorknobs and hinges and hoped that the pair wouldn't be doing as much digging as he had. He didn't want to apparate unless he needed to, for fear they would notice the sound.

"It's already unlocked," said Bella as she reached the door. "That's weird."

"Do you think Filch is in there?" asked Jordan fretfully.

"He'd already be shouting at us if he were. He's just left it unlocked. Come on." Bella pushed open the door and lit her wand. "See I told you they were here," the said triumphantly as she gestured to a forest of damaged and discarded brooms.

Apparently Bella was back to her old habits. These, though, were old rubbish brooms that nobody would miss any more than his the rusty trowel so Kuro thought it best not to get in her way this time. He held his breath and let them go about their business. They eventually picked out a couple of battered brooms that still had enough bristles to carry their weight. It seemed that they weren't very concerned with the flying ban.

Kuro let them leave the shed and waited for them to take off on their borrowed brooms before exiting himself. He carefully locked the door and did his best to hide any footprints around the shed before apparating back into the school.

He met with Azalea and Victoire early the next morning, eager to complete their project. It went about as well as he expected. They fought over which would transfigure what metal and then over whose finished flowers were more elegant. They struggled with transfiguring the silver cup, though.

"Kuro, where did you find this spell?" complained Victoire. "Is it even real?"

"It's rubbish," growled Azalea. "Why did you put it in the report?"

Kuro shrugged. "You two seemed to be pretty good at this stuff. I thought you could do it. I guess I was wrong. We can just tear it out."

"It's not that I can't do it," said Victoire Pompously. "But I may be the only one."

"You can't even read it properly with your nose so high in the air Princess Weasley," Azalea snarled. "I was casting it perfectly. Your timing was off."

Kuro sighed. It had been worth a try. It was the most they had spoken in week, though. As long as they didn't kill each other over it, maybe he could call it a small victory.

McGonagall appeared as if summoned by Kuro's failure to get the girls to get along. He looked up at in exasperation defeat. She didn't look angry or disappointed, though. She looked worried. 

"Good, you're all together," said the Headmistress in a deeply troubled tone. "You'd best all come with me."

She led the three of them swiftly out of the library and up to her office, not saying a word on the way and moving with so much haste that Kuro had to run to keep up.

Kuro had never been to her office. It was spartan. Portraits of old witches and wizards hung around the walls, and a large, solid desk occupied the centre of the room, but those seemed to be the only permanent fixtures. As she moved through the space, though, the ghostly outlines of myriad objects shimmered in her presence. Cabinets, tables, chairs bureaus, a fish tank, several suits of armour, all floating at the edge of existence waiting for her to call them into being when needed.

Four others were waiting in the room for them. Professor Hagrid, who looked red-eyed and bleary, Harry Potter who paced pensively, and Mary and Charlie who sat in conjured chairs looking frightened.

McGonagall waved her hand and three more chairs appeared. "Sit," she instructed and then added, "please," in a small effort to soften her tone.

Kuro climbed into the stiff chair that had appeared for him and waited anxiously. He looked to Charlie and Mary for an explanation as to what was happening but they looked as lost as he was. 

McGonagall sat down briskly and looked over the collected five students. Her expression in a pitched battle between concern, anger, and sadness. "I have some news that concerns you all and and Professor Potter will have some questions for you." She took a deep breath, steeling herself and said "Three students went missing last night: Belladonna Avery, Jordan Selwyn, and Edward Lupin."

All five of them were speechless. Charlie's jaw kept opening and closing as if she were trying to form words but failing. Mary looked blank and numb. Victoire's forehead furrowed in deep worry, and Victoire looked to Potter for confirmation, not wanting to believe it.

"I understand that this is difficult news for you all, but it is urgent that we gather as much information as possible if we have any hope of finding them," McGonagall said firmly. "Have any of you noticed anything unusual recently. Mary, you are dating Jordan, are you not? Have you had any problems?"

"We broke up," said Mary. Her voice sounded distant, detached.

"I'm sorry dear, when was this?"

"A few days ago," Mary said guiltily. "He was afraid of being kidnapped, so I stayed with him, but I got fed up with him... And now it's my fault that he's gone."

"I'm sure it's not your fault Miss Akinwande," said McGonagall with more impatience than sympathy. "Is there anything else? Anything unusual?"

"There was the dementor in the dungeons!" blurted Charlie.

Potter nearly tripped when she said it. He reacted with as much excitement as fear. "A dementor? Here? Impossible. What did it feel like?"

"It was like you said in class. It floated and had dark robes and covered its face in a hood. It wheezed and hissed..."

"Not what it looked like." interrupted Potter. "What did it feel like?"

"It, um. It didn't feel like anything. It didn't touch me."

"Then it wasn't a dementor. Maybe a boggart. Maybe a prank." Potter seemed almost disappointed. "If it were a dementor, you would know." Potter's eyes passed over the others with suspicion. "Victoire, anything odd about Teddy last night?"

"No," she said uncertainly. "He said goodbye before he left to go to Hagrid's for the full moon like normal. How did they get him away from Hagrid?"

"Sleeping potion," said Hagrid, his voice heavy with grief. "Teddy probably had some too. Dunno how it got into the tea, but it knocked me flat. Still feelin it."

"Avery?" Potter turned to Azalea with markedly more suspicion in his voice than when he had addressed Victoire. "Anything funny around your sister lately."

Azalea looked at Potter with disgust and hatred. "No." she said angrily.

"I know something," said Kuro quietly. He had been wrestling with himself the whole time about whether to mention his near encounter with Bella and Jordan at Filch's shed. Doing so could admit breaking several rules and might get him in a lot of trouble.

"What was that Kuro?" asked Potter, breaking away from Azalea and fixing him with a penetrating stare.

"I saw them last night." Kuro couldn't bring himself to meet Potter's eyes. "They were together by Filch's toolshed near the greenhouses."

"How do you know this?" asked McGonagall.

"Because," Kuro took a deep breath. "Because I was already inside when they got there. They took two brooms."

"What were you doing in Filch's toolshed?" demanded the headmistress. 

"Collecting junk metal for our transfiguration project," he said guiltily. He looked to his partners. Azalea looked impressed. Victoire looked scandalized.

"And how, praytell, did you get there?" she asked. "It would seem there is a gap in our security." She gave a disapproving look at Potter.

This is what Kuro had been most afraid of. He didn't dare lie with three lives on the line, and McGonagall would probably see through him, anyway. He wasn't very good at lying. However, the truth was going to get him, and probably Bindal, in a lot of trouble. "I apparated," 

Charlie nearly fell out of her chair in her excitement. "What? How?" she asked. She leaned over close and looked him up and down as if the instructions for how it was done were written on his skin.

"One of the elf children that works here taught me," he replied, shrinking under her scrutiny.

McGonagall raised a quizzical eyebrow. "Wizards cannot apparate on school grounds," she said "And there are no elf children working or living here at Hogwarts. It's not like you to lie, Kuro."

Kuro stared at McGonagall in disbelief. He didn't understand. Was it possible she didn't know about the elf children. Did the elves keep the children hidden even from the headmistress. "I'm telling the truth," Kuro asserted. "Check the shed, they made a mess of the brooms."

"It doesn't really matter how he got there," interrupted Potter. "I'll have an auror look into the shed, and speak to Filch about any other booms that might be hiding about the place. For now, we should get the kids somewhere safe and make sure all other students are accounted for." 

Kuro expected McGonagall to scold Potter for talking like he was still an auror, but instead she just kept looking at Kuro, puzzling over what he had said. "We'll speak more of this later, Kuro" she said after an uncomfortable pause. She motioned to the door. "Everyone, please return to your houses immediately and remain there. A formal announcement will be made to the school shortly. I ask that you keep this information to yourselves until that time."

The five of them left the office in a gloomy daze. None of them spoke as they marched through the halls, and they were reluctant to part ways. "We'll walk you to your houses," said Mary reassuringly to the two younger girls. "You shouldn't be alone."

McGonagall's words rolled around in his head again and again. Why would she say that there were no elf children at Hogwarts? Wasn't she Bindal's master? Why would she pretend otherwise? She'd also said that "Wizards cannot apparate on school grounds." 

But of course they could. Kuro could apparate. Bindal could apparate, McGonagall could... But she couldn't. The one time last year that she had apparated with Kuro, it had been outside of the gates. Wizards couldn't apparate, but Kuro wasn't a proper wizard. Wizards couldn't... elves could.

The horrible reality washed over him and he began to run. He was vaguely aware of the shouts of his friends behind him, but they were lost in the violent storm that was raging in his head. Bindal had never told Kuro who his master was. Bindal had never been able to say what he was doing when he wasn't with Kuro. Bindal had been very busy for the past couple of weeks. He had also been very busy before Charlie's quidditch game and before the ball. Very busy doing what?

Kuro practically knocked the door off of Myrtle's washroom as he crashed inside. "Bindal!" he shouted. "Bindal are you here? Can you hear me? Bindal get out here right now."

Crack!

Bindal was there, but he didn't seem able to meet Kuro's eyes. "Bindal, it was you wasn't it. You took them."

Bindal nodded slightly and then violently bit down on his finger, drawing blood in punishment for his admission.

"You took Edward?" Kuro said in disbelief. "You took everyone?"

Tears began streaming down Bindal's face and he started punching himself.

"Why?"

Bindal's eyes went wide with horror at the thought of explaining it, but Kuro understood. He had been ordered to. His master was using Bindal to get the children. Bindal could sneak in, entirely ignored as an elf. He could get to them, talk to them, lure off the property and then Bindal could apparate them away.

"Where?" Kuro begged. "Please, Bindal, where are they? Where is Edward?"

Bindal said nothing, but he held out his hand for Kuro to take. He couldn't say it, but he could apparate Kuro to them.

"Are you kidnapping me?" Kuro asked warily.

Bindal shook his head violently.

Before Kuro could take the hand, the four others piled into the washroom, having chased him through the halls. Kuro expected that Bindal would disapparate the moment a wizard appeared, but he stayed steadfast in place with his hand outstretched. It looked like it was taking every ounce of his strength to stay put. He was biting nearly clean though his lip as punishment for what he was doing.

Charlie was the first to speak. "What's going on Kuro? Who is this? What is this? Why did you run off? Why are you in a girl's washroom? Why is that elf so wrinkly?"

Kuro looked to Myrtle who was peeking her face through a stall door to watch. "Myrtle, can you explain to them once I'm gone?"

"I knew you'd leave me eventually. You're going to go die somewhere far away and never visit me again" said Myrtle gloomily. "I'll tell them."

"Tell us what?" demanded Victoire. "Where are you going?"

"I think I can find them," said Kuro as confidently as he could. "I need to go now, though. I don't think my friend, here, can wait."

"You're not going without me!" asserted Azalea as she stormed up to him. "They have my sister."

"I can't take you," said Kuro, "Wizards can't apparate from Hogwarts."

"But you can?" said Mary warily.

"Yeah," Kuro didn't have time to explain. Bindal stomped his foot on the floor and presented his hand more urgently.

"You can't go by yourself," said Charlie. "Do you even know what's waiting for you?"

"No I don't," said Kuro. "And it doesn't matter. I have to go. I have to try to save them. They might be in danger."

"But you're useless," said Victoire. "You won't last a minute without us. We're coming."

"I can't take you!" shouted Kuro, wishing that she were wrong. He could use the help. Facing a kidnapper alone wasn't likely to go well. As much as he knew that bringing the others into danger with him was selfish, he wished that there was a way. 

As he again reached for Bindal's hand to leave, he heard Sprig rustling in his satchel and a thought occurred to him. Sprig, Graeae and the boggart had traveled safely in his bag through several apparitions. Maybe wizards could too. "Get in my bag." he said urgently.

"What?" said everyone else in unison.

"If you're so eager to come, get in the bag. I don't have time to argue." He threw down his satchel.

Charlie, who knew it best, opened the flap and crawled inside eagerly. Azalea and Victoire glared at each other. They didn't trust the other, but were equally unwilling to stay behind. As they crawled in Mary kneeled to follow them. "You're coming?" asked Kuro in surprise.

"Of course," she looked offended at the suggestion that she might do otherwise.

Kuro slung the magical bag over his shoulder and took a last look at Myrtle. "Tell McGonagall," he said before taking Bindal's hand and being engulfed by nothingness.


	22. Breakout

It was difficult to judge time or distance in a space where neither exist, but Kuro felt the apparation took much longer than normal. The instant it took to pop between places stretched out long enough for thoughts and fears to creep in. He worried about his sack full of friends and allies, what they were experiencing and whether they could even survive such a trip. He tried to hold on tight to the satchel but it was no more a physical thing than he was, just a collection of thoughts caught in a gale. 

He also had time to doubt. He trusted Bindal, he was sure of that. But he could not know if Bindal was being honest, or if he were acting under the orders of his master. Could Kuro be helping to kidnap himself and five more children? 

Before he could ponder his mistakes any further, he spun back into being like a toilet unflushing.

He found himself in a bare stone room, barely long enough for a grown man to lie down in. The only light came from a window so small that not even Bindal could fit through. The window was heavily barred and the light was poor and dim that a single candle would have better lit the room. The sound of roaring, crashing waves from far below filled the room and a chill wind swirled in making it feel even colder than it already was.

Kuro looked in his bag. "Are you alright? he whispered.

"Yeah, we're okay," said Charlie. "Nothing's happened yet. Did you really apparate? Where are we now?"

"I'm not sure," he said before laying down the bag so the four girls could crawl out. "But I think we're where the others were taken. Bindal, are we in the right place?"

Bindal carefully creaked open a heavy metal door and looked out into the hallway beyond. "The Kuro is right. This is the where," he whispered.

"How does this elf know?" Victoir demanded as she freed herself from the satchel.

Bindal looked indignant. "Because I is taking them here," he said, annoyed at the stupidity of wizards.

Azalea drew her wand and pointed it at Bindal. "You kidnapped Bella? Tell me where she is before I curse you into pieces!" she threatened.

Bindal cowered behind Kuro. "Bindal is not kidnapping nobody. They is wanting to come. I is giving messages for the master. Bindal is helping."

"Why would my sister want to come here?" Azalea stomped petulantly. "Why wouldn't she tell me? Why wouldn't she bring me?"

"You is the sister of Bella?" asked Bindal in surprised. He peeked out around Kuro's back and examined her. "I is being told of only one Avery."

"What do you mean? Who told you anything?"

"The master," explained Bindal. "The master is giving all orders. I is a proper elf. I is having a master. The master is telling me to find the Avery girl and the Selwyn boy and the Nott Girl and the Jugson boy and give them the messages."

"What messages?" Azalea was relentless in her interrogation and kept trying to get around Kuro to grab the little elf.

"I is not knowing. I is not reading them. I is not allowed. I is thinking they is letters or is invitations. They is telling the children how to be escaping Hogwarts."

Kuro noticed that Bindal was talking unusually openly and to witches and telling them things he'd never told Kuro. "Bindal," he interrupted. "How come you can talk to everyone. Isn't there a rule?"

"I is allowed to talk here." Bindal rolled his eyes at how obvious it was. "I is not at Hogwarts. I is not allowed to be talking or being seen by any witches or wizardses at Hogwarts." He repeated the phrase as though quoting someone. "But we is not at Hogwarts is we?"

That was very obviously true. This place had none of the warmth that filled Hogwarts. It was cold and bleak in a way that felt like it was sucking the warmth from the marrow of Kuro's bones. He was afraid to ask, "where are we?"

"We is at Azkaban Prison," said Bindal plainly.

A collective gasp took the room and everyone else readied their wand reflexively at the news of where they were. Marry followed along but looked uncertain.

"We should go back," said Kuro quickly, not wanting to stay a second longer than needed. "We'll go back and tell McGonagall. Everyone get back in the bag."

"No!" said Azalea. "We're not leaving without Bella."

"Or Teddy," added Victoire.

"What's Azkaban again?" Mary whispered.

"It's the wizard prison," said Charlie too worried about where they were to remember her feud with Mary. "It's where the worst dark wizards go."

"It's where my old master is," said Kuro shakily.

"It's where my father is," mumbled Azalea.

"Yes," agreed Bindal "Mr. Avery and Mr. Hearn is here. They is with the master."

"What does that mean?" asked Victoire, "and where is Teddy?"

"The Teddy Lupin is also with the master, I is thinking." Bindal fidgeted with his filthy Hogwarts dishtowel tabard. "I is sorry..."

That seemed an odd response. Kuro hadn't known Bindal to apologize for much of anything in his time with him. "What are you sorry for?"

Bindal was struggling with what looked like guilt. As a proper house elf, he wouldn't have ever had cause to feel it. He did only what he was told. He wouldn't have felt guilty about following, or failing to meet his orders, only fearful of the punishments. It was probably the first time he'd ever felt it and it was tying him in knots.

"I is... not wanting to take him." Bindal said evasively. "He is not wanting to come. I is not knowing it is being him. The Selwyn boy, he is bringing a dog. I is not knowing it is the Teddy Lupin. I is not wanting to take the Kuro monster's friend."

"It's okay, Bindal," Kuro said sympathetically. "I know you didn't have a choice."

"It is not okay," Victoire interjected. "You kidnapped five people. You kidnapped Teddy. Where are they."

"I is not certain," said Bindal. "They is moving around much. We is maybe having to look for them."

"Then let's get started," said Charlie. "We need to rescue Edward before anything really bad happens to him." Charlie waited for nods of approval from the others which she received with varying degrees of certainty. With everyone in agreement, she held up her wand as if ready to duel, and led them out through the narrow doorway into the depths of Azkaban.

The hallways they crept through were cold, narrow, tunnels of unbroken granite. It was as though the entire fortress-like prison had been hewn from a single block of dark grey stone. They passed cell after cell, all empty, but mad screams echoed distantly telling them that they would find some cells that were not.

"Bindal," Kuro whispered. "Who is your master? Is it the warden, here? An auror?"

Bindal's brow furrowed as he tried to find an answer that he could give without punishing himself. "I is not the servant of the aurors. There is not any real aurors here no more. The master is freeing the prisoners."

"What?" said Victoire louder than she should have. "You're lying. Uncle Harry would never allow that. The whole Auror office would be here fixing it."

"They is not knowing," said Bindal hushing her. "The Death Eaters is being disguised as aurors. They is pretending Azkaban is still fine."

The mission to rescue their friends and family was starting to seem unimportant. They had been expecting to find a single kidnapper. If Azkaban had really fallen and it was in the hands of the Death Eaters, they were facing a small army of dark wizards. Kuro knew that they should leave. They should go back right away and tell McGonagall what was happening, but he couldn't bear the thought of leaving Edward and the others in the hands of death eaters and he could see that the others had no thought of leaving either. What they really needed were allies.

"Have all the prisoners been freed?" asked Kuro.

"No," whispered Bindal as he peeked around a corner to make sure the hall ahead was empty. "Only friends of the master is freed. There is mad ones and mean ones and some who is aurors for hostage still in cages."

"What about Ms. Crawley?" Kuro both hoped and feared that their defense against the dark arts teacher from the year before was still in here. Kuro thought he could trust her, though she had once been on the side of the dark wizards.

"The Crawley woman? Is not free, no. Is being example for not being loyal to the master. Is not well."

"Is she alive?" Kuro asked in horror.

"Is alive, yes. Is in cell."

"Do you know where she is? We need her help." Kuro said urgently.

"What are you doing Kuro" grumbled Azalea. "We're here for Bella and the others."

"We need help," said Kuro. "We can't fight real death eaters. Ms. Crawley is a proper witch. She used to teach aurors how to fight. She can help."

Azalea grudgingly accepted the argument. As arrogant as she was, she didn't look keen to fight an army of full grown wizards, either.

"Can you bring us to her. Bindal?" asked Kuro.

Bindal did not look enthusiastic about the task. He wrung his teatowel tabard and fidgeted fearfully. "I is not liking to go close to her. I is staying away from prisoners and guards," he said. He saw the disappointment in Kuro's expression and he seemed to change his mind. He squared his shoulders and said with as much boldness as the little elf could muster. "but I is showing you the way. Follow."

Bindal took the lead and moved with purpose, stopping often to hush the trailing students and listen. His large bat-like ears twitching at sounds too faint for the others to hear. On a couple of occasions he rushed them into cells to hide as someone ambled through the halls near them.

It felt like an hour of creeping through the dark maze of oppressively narrow corridors. Their path was indirect, avoiding areas where people might gather, or anywhere they couldn't dash into a cell or alcove to hide.

It was hard to stay calm and quiet. It felt like any they could be found out at any moment, and they had no idea what would be done with them. Would they be killed? Thrown in a cell and left to starve? Held as hostages? Pressed into slavery?

All of these fears swirled in Kuro's head and his heart thumped painfully in his chest as they waited for another wandering death eater to pass. Something was different this time. It wasn't a lone patrol. There were voices and they were arguing.

"Do you honestly think I can let you go?" said an angry man. "Besides, you belong here. It's safe here. You're with family."

"I didn't come to stay," replied a familiar girl's voice. "You lied in your letters. You said you wanted to see me. You said I didn't have to stay." It was Bella.

They didn't have a chance to hear the rest of the argument. Azalea, upon hearing her sister's voice, bolted from the cell in which they were hiding. She was in the hall and running towards her sister before the rest had realized what was happening.

"Get away from Bella!" she cried. "Stupe.."

She didn't get the rest of her spell out. The man she'd shouted at out-cast her. "Crucio!" he said.

Kuro knew that spell well. It was the forbidden torture curse. The gurgling pathetic cries of Azalea spurred the rest of them into action. Kuro's feet were moving without him telling them to. He rounded the corner at the head of their charge in time to see Bella attack a tall, broad man in an auror's uniform, shoving him into the wall.

It didn't knock him down but was enough to break the curse, though Azalea remained shuddering on the floor. "Belladonna, what do you think you are doing?" snarled the tall blonde man dressed as an auror. 

"She's your daughter you sick monster," Bella accused.

Kuro saw a look of horror on the man's face as he recognized the whimpering heap at his feet as his own child.

It was also enough of a distraction for the others to make an assault. "Expelliarmus!" shouted Victoire as she rounded the corner behind Kuro, sending his wand sailing into the air and skittering back down the hallway.

Mr. Avery roared with anger and dove for Azalea's wand at his feet. Charlie saw it coming and raced him for it. She dove forward landing sprawled over Azalea but was moments too slow. All she could do was wrap herself around the younger girl to shield her from whatever was to come next.

No spell fell, though. Mary had been only a couple steps behind. She leaped the two fallen girls and collided with the larger man, knocking him backwards. She landed heavily on top of him on all fours snarling and furry, her powerfully clawed paws digging into his chest. She had transformed mid-air into a large, angry, black and white badger. She bit down on his wrist and thrashed her head back and forth until he was forced to release the wand.

Mr. Avery looked angry but not foolish enough to wrestle with an angry badger without a wand. He reached with his free hand to recover his own wand from down the hall only to find that Bella had beaten him to it. She held it out threateningly.

He raised his free hand, accepting his defeat. Mary released him and backed away slowly, still growling threateningly.

"How did you get in here?" he asked in a snarling sneer at the group of invading children.

"What should we do with him?" asked Victoire, ignoring him.

"We can't let him go," said Charlie. "And if we bring him with us he'll turn on us at the worst moment. Villains do that. Let's throw him in a jail cell."

"He could still yell for help," said Victoire. We need to silence him. Tie him up and gag him or something.

"We should stun him," mumbled Azalea as she weakly recovered her wand and found her feet. "You're right. He is a villain."

Mr. Avery looked wounded at the accusation. "No, child. I didn't know who you were. I would never have if I had known. I would have sent for you, like I did Bella. They told me you and your mother had died," he said with sincere remorse.

Azalea wasn't having it. "But you would have to someone else's child. Everything people said about you is true, isn't it?" Tears were streaming down Azalea's face but otherwise her fierce features were steady and calm as she raised her wand.

"At least tell me your name, child," said Mr. Avery desperately.

"No," she said flatly. "My mother gave it to me before she died. You can't have it." She nodded to Bella and together they chanted "Stupefy."

Mr. Avery crumpled as two red bolts hit him from opposite directions. The others dragged him into a cell to keep him out of sight and Kuro shot a few paralyzing green bolts into the unconscious man just for good measure while conversations that did not involve him carried on.

"That was incredible," said Charlie excitedly to Mary, too impressed to remember to be angry with her. "You were all like jump, poof, rawr. It was better than McGonagall. Since when can you do that?"

"It just sort of happened," said Mary a bit evasively. "I mean I've been practicing for months, but..." She paused awkwardly. "I could never do it though. Not until I needed to, I guess. Some of the older club members said it's easier if you have a reason."

Charlie looked starry eyed, moved by Mary's heroism. "So you couldn't do it until I was in danger and you needed to save me?" 

"I guess so," said Mary. "Yeah. I mean, I couldn't let him hurt you."

Charlie made a show of wiping away a tear. "So you're an animagus now. That is so cool. And a badger! Wait till people find out. That's gonna be something. A badger. Whoa."

Mary looked a little uncertain. "Could you not tell people yet?" she asked awkwardly.

A cold wave of recollection swept over Charlie's face washing away the ecstatic cheer. She fixed Mary with a steely glare. "I thought you wanted to be special," she said accusingly.

"Maybe not quite this special," Mary was trying to look tough but was having trouble meeting Charlie's eyes.

"So you want me to keep your secret, one that would make people treat you different?" Charlie crossed her arms and scrunched her face judgmentally.

Mary face contorted as she wrestled silently with something inside her for a moment before stood straight and fierce and faced Charlie proudly. She looked ready to fight. "No." Mary sounded confident and bold, the way Kuro was used to her being. "You can tell whoever you want, Charlie. Just pick better than I did." She rounded on the others in the room. "If any of the rest of you tell anyone, though, I will gnaw your legs off. Got it?"

She said it so ferociously that everyone nodded in agreement without question.

"I'm sorry Charlie," she said. "I've been a git."

Charlie tried to look indignant but she was too overcome with emotion to maintain it. She threw her arms around Mary and crushed her in a powerful hug. Mary reacted stiffly at first, but eased into it, patting her friend on the back. "Maybe we can do this later. We have to save Ed." said Mary after the moment went on an uncomfortably long time.

"What about Jordan?" Asked Charlie, a little confused.

Mary rolled her eyes disdainfully. "Ugh. Yeah him too."

Charlie giggled and Mary Joined in.

Kuro was glad that they were getting along, but wasn't really sure this was the place for long heartfelt make-ups.

He looked to the other girls. They stood in a cell and watched the magic that had been disguising Mr. Avery fade. He was no longer the strapping and noble looking auror, but a withered and cruel looking man. He had the same pale skin and dark hair of his daughters, but his pointed nose and proud jaw reminded Kuro more of his former master. 

"We should..." Kuro's voice cracked with fear. He was still shaking from the last encounter, but he swallowed the lump that made him afraid to move forward and tried to sound confident. "We should keep moving. We don't know how much time we have."

Bella gripped her father's fallen wand with resolve. "Okay, follow me, and stay quiet. I think I know where the others are."

"We've someone else to rescue first," Said Kuro.

Kuro explained as Bindal led them through the halls. They were even more cautious than before, pausing frequently for Binal to listen and diving into cells at even the slightest echo out of place. As they moved the mad screams and shuddering wails that floated throughout the prison became louder.

Bindal came to an abrupt halt at an unremarkable intersection. It was as though he had run into a solid wall. "The master is calling," he said apologetically. "I is having to go. I is keeping you secret. I is promising to try. The crawley woman below. Stairs is close. You is being careful. The guardses are about."

With a crack he was gone.

Kuro looked back at where Bindal had vanished as they moved on. For the first time since they arrived, Kuro considered what sort of punishment the little elf was going to suffer for helping them. They were going to have to rescue him, too, even if he made protests about being a 'proper elf.'

"Can we trust him?" asked Bella. "Is he going to give us away?"

"It's not about trust," Kuro said sadly. "If his master asks, he will have to tell him. Proper elves don't have a choice. It's a curse." What Kuro didn't say was that he didn't know if they could escape without him. If Bindal didn't return, Kuro wasn't sure that he could safely apparate them back to Hogwarts. He'd only gone short distances on his own, and even those had been difficult. Without Bindal, they might be trapped.

"Then we'd better move fast," said Bella and she picked up her pace, leading the others swiftly down a flight of stairs and into a row of cells. They rounded the final bend to a horrible sight. A hooded figure, cloaked in tattered black robes floated along the hallway. It wheezed a slow rasping breath as it moved from cell to cell.

It was a dementor. It looked just like the boggart had, but somehow so much worse. A chill that penetrated to the bone flowed from it, forming icicles in their hearts. All warmth drained from the world in its presence and with it all sense of hope and joy.

All of the worst moments of Kuro's life flooded over him. All the fear and dread he had lived with in his time as Phineas' slave; every punishment he'd ever received; the night of terror as the aurors drove him from his first home; the night he had seen Charlie's mother murdered. All of them ran together. "Patronus," Kuro muttered bleakly. "Charlie, your patronus. Hurry."

The dementor was blind, but had sensed the presence of warm, hopeful children and drifted towards them, long bony fingers outstretched.

He looked at his friends, but they were overcome with the same dread as Kuro felt. They were too weak and frightened to even raise their wands. Kuro understood. They couldn't help it anymore than he could. There were no happy memories in this place. The dementor had left nothing to fuel a patronus. They were paralyzed by their hopelessness and fear.

Kuro had no patronus of his own, but he would not stand by and watch his friends be devoured by this monster. It was a hopeless situation, but Kuro was used to that. He had lived his life without hope or a future until he had met them. He had never needed hope or joy to fight, and he wouldn't let his friends suffer while he still drew breath.

He ran at the dementor, letting the fear and despair push him forward. He launched himself off the ground as hard as he could and leaped at the hissing creature. His fist hammered hard into its face. It felt like punching a rotten log, hollow and soggy.

The dementor reared backwards spinning and shrieking. It was more surprised than injured by the attack. It regained its bearings and lunged at Kuro, who lunged right back.

Kuro dodged one of the moldy, clawed hands but was caught by the second. He kicked and punched and bit as the dementor pulled back its hood to reveal an eyeless face with a round, toothless mouth. Kuro thrashed as the surprisingly strong monster drew him close.

It was his end. A dementor's kiss would suck his soul from his body. He would be nothing, barely alive. Kuro knew it, but maybe, just maybe, his friends had run. Maybe he had given them enough time to get away.

"Expecto Patronum!" Charlie's voice rang out crisp and clear.

The dementor let Kuro fall as it was swept down the hall by a charging silver apparition of a unicorn. As the patronus passed through him, Kuro was filled with so much joy and optimism he was nearly sick on the spot from the shock. "Thanks," he said, choking on happiness. "I thought I was done for."

"How did you do that?" Charlie interrupted. "Are you immune to dementors? Is that an elf thing? I've never felt anything like that. I mean Professor Potter told us but I never imagined it would be like that. It was like I'd never be happy again. I couldn't even move."

"It's not. I'm not. I'm just used to it," Kuro mumbled. "But you, how did you make a patronus?"

"All it needs is a really happy thought," Charlie said enthusiastically. "Watching you punch a dementor in the face was pretty awesome." She grinned manically.

"Who's there?" said a weak woman's voice from a cell.

Kuro ran to the heavy metal door and slid open the hatch to look inside. It was Ms. Crawley, but only barely. She was no longer the crisply assembled, neatly groomed woman he had known. Her clothes were ill fitting and ragged and silver manacles dangled from her wrists. Her short hair had grown out unevenly and was matted and greasy. She looked under-fed and pale from illness. Her eyes looked unfocused and were crusted from tears.

"Ms. Crawley," said Kuro. "We need your help."

"Kuro? You can't be here..." she said disbelievingly, then rolled onto her side, back to the door. " This is just another stupid trick. Piss off Hearn. I'll not tell you anything."

"Hold on, we'll get you out." replied Kuro, not wasting time to explain.

Opening the door proved harder than he had expected. The lock was enchanted somehow and sprig had no luck with it, nor did Bella using charms.

"Get out of the way," said Azalea, pushing Kuro aside. "We have this."

Her and Victoire started inspecting the door, poking it with their wands

"Cold iron?" posited Victoire.

"Definitely," agreed Azalea. "Ferrus Iridaceae!"

A sizeable portion of the door blossomed into vibrant purple irises that looked unnatural in the soulless bowels of Azkaban.

"Passable," said Victoire approvingly before casting it herself.

The pair raced to transfigure the door. Moments later they were standing knee deep in purple flowers nodding with satisfaction at their work. They strode into the cell together, both looking terribly proud of themselves while everyone else just stared.

"Manacles please, miss," said Victoire.

Ms. Crawley was utterly bemused. She presented her shackles but shook her head. "They're silver. They're very magic resistant. You won't be able to..."

"Kuro!" Azalea cut her off mid sentence. "Do you have our report with you."

Kuro smiled knowingly. He pulled the heap of parchment from his bag and flipped to the second last page for them. "Is this what you are looking for?" he asked holding up the spell for turning silver into saffron.

They poured over it together for a few moments. "Do you think we can do it?" asked Victoire earnestly.

"I can if you can," replied Azalea.

They nodded to each other and began to mark time with their wands like orchestra conductors.

"Three, two, one," they said together "Argentum crocus"

They manacles twisted and bloomed into dozens of small violet flowers which fell away from Ms. Crawley's wrists.

"Not bad, Azalea" said Victoire.

"Not bad, yourself, Victoire," said Azalea.

Kuro's jaw hung open as the pair exchanged approving smiles with each other. They had just called each other by their first names. It sounded almost alien.

He wasn't given much time to ponder this, though, because he was swept up in a crushing embrace along with the two girls by Ms. Crawley. "You're real," she said over and over. "Oh my goodness, you're real. How is this possible?"

Kuro started to explain but in that moment, Bindal appeared in the cell with a sharp crack. With urgency and desperation in his voice, he said. "There is alarms. They is coming."


	23. Lunch Interrupted

"I need to get you children out of here," said Ms. Crawley in a panic. "Dementors and Death eaters could be here any second. I don't even have a wand."

"We're not worried about dementors," said Charlie boldly. "Expecto patronum!"

Her unicorn burst from her wand and flared brightly filling much of the cell. It stomped and reared, mirroring the confidence and excitement of its caster. 

Mary grinned wickedly and followed suit. "Expecto patronum." Her badger, snarling and agitated, coalesced at the unicorn's feet.

Bella joined in, adding her own ferret to the menagerie, and Bindal, eager to show off to the wizards, summoned his tiny dragon which swooped around spouting tiny gouts of silver flame.

Ms. Crawley looked to Kuro somewhat expectantly. "I can't, um..." he mumbled. He was ashamed to face his former teacher and not perform as well as his classmates. "You can use my wand. I don't really need it."

He presented his gnarly twig of a wand to her. She took it with something nearing reverence. Just having a wand in her hand seemed to bolster her resolve and clear her mind. She quickly conjured a pair of shoes and new glasses.

"Let's get out of here. Follow me." She said regaining some of the commanding confidence she had at the front of a classroom. She stepped out into the hall and started moving boldly.

"Wait. Ms. Crawley. The others are this way," said Bella waving her in the other direction.

"How many of you are here?" she replied in horrified amazement.

"Four others," said Bella. "We need to rescue them."

"Belladonna Avery," said Ms. Crawley bruskly. "We need to get these children to safety. I don't know how you got here or what you were thinking bringing anyone so young, but we are leaving. Now. The aurors can finish the rest."

"Actually," said Bella, embarrassed. "They came to rescue me." 

"And we're not leaving without the others," said Charlie, planting her fists firmly on her hips and jutting her chin out to show how steadfast she was. 

"I'm not sure we're going to have much of a choice," replied Crawley.

The sound of running footsteps grew from one direction and the haunting rattling wheeze of dementors from the other. Crawley conjured a wall to fill the corridor as the first of the Death Eaters rounded the corner. "Move!" she said motioning in the direction of the approaching dementors. "Keep those patronuses bright and start running."

They ran.

Together, they dashed through the hallways towards the sound of dementors. from the gloom of the hallway one appeared, wheezing a call to its kin that it had found warm bodies to drain. Moments later another joined it, and another. Soon the end of the hallway was filled by a torrent of dementors. The monsters swirled over and around each other through the air, and their rhasping breaths joined in a chorus of horror as they flew towards the small group of escaping humans. 

Kuro could feel the weight of despair pressing in on them as the wave of dementors crashed against the aura of protection provided by the patronuses. The four patronuses dimmed as they struggled to push against the onslaught of dread, but they held fast. Charlie's Unicorn led the charge, pushing back the creatures of dread with her unfathomable hope and joy. Bindal's dragon and Bella's ferret attacked any that tried to sneak around the edges, and Mary's badger dove headlong into the fray, tearing gleefully at any dementor it could get close to. 

They pressed on nearly blindly through the corridors. The swirl of black robes at the edge of the reach of their patronuses blocking their view and disorienting them.

"I thought the dementors had been thrown out of Azkaban," said Victoire, who kept herself between the legs of the unicorn, far as possible from the monsters. 

"They were," answered Crawley. She had not cast her own patronus, instead choosing to stay on guard for when they inevitably encountered a death eater. "Azkaban has fallen. It was overthrown months ago. The dementors are allies of the dark wizards. They've been feeding off of anyone that refused to join. Speaking of which..."

Crawley stopped at a locked cell they were passing. She checked through the small barred window in the door before pointing Kuro's wand at the wall beside and chanting "Bombarda Maxima!" The wall exploded showering them all with rocks and dust. "Get up Fletch." She said angrily.

Languishing on the cell floor was a battered version of the auror Mr. Avery had been disguised as. He was shackled and in tattered clothes, like Ms. Crawley had been. "Crawley?" was all the shocked auror could say.

"You two," Crawley said to Victoire and Azalea. "Get his manacles. Hurry."

The pounding of feet echoing through the hallways warned of dark wizards approaching. Crawley cursed and sent a flurry of spells streaking down the hallway behind them, forcing the enemy wizards into cover. It wouldn't stop them, but it bought some time as the two girls turned the silver shackles into a scintillating pile of flowers.

"What's going on? Who are these children?" Fletch asked. His questions were followed by a string of profanity as he saw the roiling mass of dementors pressing against the embattled partonuses just outside his cell.

"Questions later," shouted Crawley between spells. "We need a guide."

"Right. Yes ma'am." Fletch was still baffled and disoriented, but he was willing to take orders. "I'll need a wand."

Azalea refused vigorously to give up her wand to an auror, particularly one that her father had been wearing the face of only minutes earlier, but Victoire grudgingly handed hers over.

"Where do we need to go?" he asked as he made himself a new uniform.

"The cafeteria!" shouted Bella. "The others should be in there."

"Take the next left!" Fletch directed as he and Crawley collapsed the corridor behind them, slowing the advance of the dark wizards.

They pressed through the halls, pushing the swarm of dementors along ahead of them and fighting a constant retreating battle as wizards came at them from behind.

"How do you plan on actually getting out of here?" asked Fletch as he stunned yet another wizard.

"No idea," said Crawly reflecting a violet bolt of magic back at its caster. "Kuro, please tell me you had a way to get out."

"Same way we got in," yelled Kuro against the deafening noise of dementors and explosions. "We apparate."

"You can't apparate in Azkaban," shouted Fletch.

"Bindal can!" said Kuro. "Elves can apparate anywhere. You guys just ride in my satchel."

"That's kind of brilliant Kuro!" said Ms. Crawley with a hint of pride in her voice.

They kept close to charlie's unicorn. It's brilliant aura created a pocket of safety as the other patronuses lunged, slashed and bit any dementor that dared approach too closely. The throng of dementors began to thin and finally broke as the group reached the end of the long halls. 

The hall ended in a heavily reinforced metal door. Azalea prepared to reduce it to blossoms, but the Auror, Fletch, didn't wait. He blasted it open, inelegantly and pushed the others through the dust and rubble. Beyond it, the halls were more open and no longer lined with cells. 

The dementors and wizards both behind them now, there was nothing slowing them down. They broke into a run. 

There was a twenty yard sprint, dodging red and blue bolts of fire and lightning from the Death Eaters before Bella took a sharp turn to the right and led them down a short hall to a large wooden door. 

They crashed through the door, not even slowing to open it properly. Fletch slammed it shut behind him and he and Crawley set about quickly enchanting it. "Impervio! Protego maxima!" they shouted. A shimmering film flowed over the granite wall, seeping into it like the rock were a sponge.

The eight of them panted, gasping for breath in the precious seconds the barrier would give them. The patronuses winked out one-by-one as their caster flagged from exhaustion.

It took several moments for any of them to take notice of the other occupants of the room. Antimonie, Leonard, Kalliste, and Jordan were sitting together at a long table with half-eaten lunches before them. Leonard had a sandwich halfway to his mouth but he appeared to have forgotten about it. He stared dumbstruck at the sudden intrusion as did the others.

"You came for me!" said Jordan, breaking the silence. "I told you that you'd miss me."

Mary sneered at Jordan. "We're here to rescue you" she said, repulsion in her voice. "Don't make us change our minds."

"We don't need rescuing," said Jordan. "We're right where we should be, with our families. You should stay, too. It's not like the days with Voldemort. They don't care if you're a mudblood."

"Where's Ed?" interrupted Mary viciously.

"Don't be like that," he said soothingly. "I'll explain everything."

"I don't need you to explain anything," growled Mary. "You knew. You knew the whole time. You were pretending to be afraid of getting kidnapped just so I wouldn't break up with you. The second I stopped playing along you trotted off to your Death Eater dad and took one of my best friends for good measure."

Mary was gripping her wand so tightly that Kuro wasn't sure if she was planning to curse him or stab him with it.

"You didn't even come for me did you?" Jordan's face twisted in hurt which quickly turned to anger. "You came for that stupid werewolf. You don't really care about me at all! Well you'll never get him back! Your little Teddy wolf is with the master."

The wall behind them rumbled and dust rained from the ceiling. The Death Eaters were trying to break through. Crawley and Fletch focused their efforts on reinforcing their work, but it was clearly a losing battle, with cracks forming faster than they could seal them. 

A quiet and nervous voice beside Kuro inserted itself into the fight between the two students. "The master is calling." said Bindal, frightened. "I is having to go. I is not wanting to."

Nobody but Kuro seemed to hear him over the booming of magic against the wall and the shouting of Mary and Jordan. Kuro could see Bindal struggle to stay put, to fight against the call to disapparate to his master's side. Bits of him stretched and flickered. Kuro grabbed Bindal's hand and tried to hold him in place. "You can't go," he said. "We need you."

The wall began to shake and flakes of stone cracked away from it.

"We're out of time!" said Ms. Crawley. "We need to leave now. Are you lot coming or not?"

"No!" snapped Jordan. "I'm staying here with my father. With people that actually care about me."

"Me too," said Kaliste Nott. "I'm not leaving my dad. Not again."

"You two are nuts," said Antimonie. "Get me out of here, please."

Kuro held on to Bindal, trying to keep him in place. He could feel the tug of disapparition and he did everything he could to be an anchor, to refuse to get pulled along. He tried to be as heavy as possible, as immovable as the shuddering stone wall behind him and just as attached to the floor. It worked, but only so much. Kuro felt like he was being stretched further and further, a rubber band nearing the point of breaking.

Bindal's body shuddered as he, too struggled against the irresistible call of his master. Between the noise of the pounding assault and the shouting, their struggle to stay put was being ignored by the others.

The last of the missing children to speak was the first kidnappee, Leonard. He was spotty and pale, lanky and awkward. He stuttered terribly when he spoke and shook as he rose from his seat. "I'd I'd I'd llllllike to g g go. T t to le le leave here."

"Right, Everyone get in Kuro's bag then," instructed Ms. Crawley. "Kuro how many can you take at a time?"

Kuro could not answer. In that moment, Bindal disapparated. His body vanished into a speck of darkness, pulling Kuro along with him. Kuro tried to resist, to keep his feet planted firmly on the granite floor of the prison cafeteria. He felt his body slowly discorporate, unraveling as his arm and body followed Bindal, then his legs. Finally the last of his desperate resistance failed and his feet were pulled along as well, his overstretched disapparated body recoiled into a whole as they snapped into being and tumbled painfully onto an elegant woven rug.

"Well well," said a gentle, croaking voice of an old man. "It seems we have a hitchhiker."


	24. The Master

Kuro grabbed for his wand but found himself unable to move before he was even able to get it out of his pocket or raise his head to see where they'd landed. Every muscle was frozen in place, so much so that he could barely breathe.

"Now now, don't be rude," said the man, his voice ancient and unworried. He sounded more amused than angry. "Now Bindal, stop that," he said kindly.

Bindal had immediately started smashing his head on the carpet upon their arrival as punishment for what must be a laundry list of offences against his master. He stopped instantly at the old man's command.

"I guess you're the master then?" said Kuro through a locked jaw.

"Yes, they do call me that," said the old man wearily. "It's an old title; not one I chose. Master Claudius Lafcadio Ulfric Roche the Third, in full." The man was infuriatingly calm and kindly sounding given the situation. "Now I'm going to release you, but I don't want any funny business. Take that wand out slowly and toss it to the side. Then we can have a talk."

It sounded like Roche was inviting Kuro for a quiet tea. Did he not know about the pitched battle happening between his subordinates and Kuro's friends?

Kuro felt the magical stiffness in his limbs ease. "Nice and slowly now, no sense in doing something hasty. I've no intention of hurting you."

Kuro looked up from the carpet and scanned the area as he stood to face Master Roche. The room was large and warm, with a roaring fire and shelves full of books, though he could still hear the roar of waves coming through a couple of small windows high up on the wall. There was a single door, locked and heavily against intrusion. The floor and walls were of the same granite as the rest of Azkaban, but covered in a plush rug and vibrant tapestries. The room was full of interesting objects: a large wooden globe floated above a small table; a brass model of the solar system hung in the air, the planets orbiting a glowing sun at the centre; a strange iron statue of a portly woman occupied a corner; and an elegant chandelier with dozens of candles filled the room with a welcoming glow.

The man himself sat behind a large mahogany desk covered in scrolls and books. There was a heavy brass place-marker that read 'Warden' in large block letters letters, though Kuro doubted that he was the real warden of Azkaban.

He was incredibly old. Any hair he might have once had on his head had migrated entirely to his chin and flowed in a long, white beard. He was stooped and crooked. His face sagged badly on one side which made him look slightly pitiful, but not unkind. His tired eyes twinkled with a smile through the thick glass of his square spectacles.

There was another occupant of the room as well. Muzzled and shackled, a large grey and brown wolf lay trapped in a corner of the room. It was Edward, Kuro was sure of it, though he'd only seen him in wolf form once. He was so bound that he must not be able to transform back into a human. If he did the shackles around his wrists and ankles would crush them. They were probably enchanted, besides, locking him in his shape as much as his place.

Kuro considered apparating away, but two of his friends were trapped in this room. He had do do something to rescue them. Slowly, he drew the gnarled stick of a wand from his pocket and tossed it aside as directed.

"Very good my boy," said Roche pleasantly. "Kuro is it? I've been wanting to speak with you for some time, though I admit I had hoped it would be under better circumstances. Please, come. Have a seat."

Kuro moved cautiously across the well adorned office and climbed into a large soft leather chair across from Roche. He picked a seat with a good view of Edward, not wanting to take his eyes off of him. He could also see his discarded wand.

"Biscuit," offered Roche, presenting a silver tray of shortbread cookies.

"No thank you," replied Kuro. Roche was being so genial that Kuro found it hard not to be polite.

"Suit yourself," Roche took one himself and enjoyed a bite of it before beginning to speak. "I don't suppose you would have heard of me, young Kuro?" he croaked pleasantly.

Kuro had heard of him, Ms. Crawley had said his name. He had been one of the people responsible for Kuro's creation. Kuro didn't say so, though. He didn't want to give anything away to the suspiciously friendly old man. Also he was trying to pay attention to what was happening on the other side of the room.

The stick Kuro had cast aside was stretching its limbs and looking around curiously. His real wand was still in the hands of Ms. Crawley. The stick in his pocket had been Sprig, who was now taking interest in the various holes around the room. Roche, so far, hadn't noticed.

"I am, as much as can be said of anyone, your grandfather, Kuro," said Roche gently. "And I must admit that I have very much failed you in that regard."

This took Kuro by surprise. What little he knew of Roche made him out to be the evilest of dark wizards. Opening with an offer of biscuits and an apology was not at all what Kuro would have expected.

"You see, I left you in the care of Phineas,but his bitterness at the loss of his station brought out the worst in him." Roch's voice was little more than a wheezy whisper, even so, his sadness and disappointment were clear. "You have been sorely mistreated, dear boy. He believed you a failure, but just you being here marks you as a great success. The first of your kind. I'm very proud."

The aged wizard appeared genuine in his praise of Kuro. Kuro didn't like that he was being moved by it. It was rare that anyone said anything nice about Kuro, and unheard of for them to willingly claim him as family. He thought that he should be fighting to escape, but Master Roche was so welcoming and calm that Kuro wasn't certain anymore.

Roche also appeared unaware or unconcerned about the battle raging through the halls of Azkaban. Kuro didn't think it a good idea to tell him about it if he didn't already know. He needed to keep him talking and looking his way, though, if Sprig was going to have a chance to unlock Edward's shackles. "What do you want?" Kuro asked.

"That is a very good question," Master Roche croaked, wagling a bony finger at Kuro approvingly. "What I want is very simple, but so very complicated to achieve." He let Kuro ponder that for a moment as he stroked his long white beard. "Quite simply, I would like to ensure the safety of wizardkind."

"Safety from what?" asked Kuro, quite confused.

"Bright boy. Very inquisitive." Roche's wrinkled eyes twinkled. "I seek safety from the oldest and greatest threat the magical world has ever known, the muggliato." Roche seemed to recognize Kuro's uncertainty at the word. "Muggles, in common parlance" he said. "Do you know how many of them there are, Kuro?"

"No I don't," replied Kuro. He risked a glance at Sprig as Roche gathered his breath. It was picking through the various locks on the office door. Kuro hoped that Sprig wouldn't be afraid to approach a wolf. "How many?" Kuro asked.

"Seven billion," said Roche threateningly.

"That sounds like a lot," said Kuro.

"Quite," agreed Roche. "And that fool Riddle's little coup has made them wary. A lot of grandstanding and showing off to no real end."

"Riddle?" asked Kuro having lost the thread of the conversation.

"Tom Riddle, or Lord Voldemort as he fancied himself." Roche scoffed dismissively.

"Aren't you one of the Dark Lord's Death Eaters?" asked Kuro. He was still uncomfortable using the name, as Phineas had trained him to be fearful of it.

"One of his Death Eaters." Roche shook his head and waved the idea away as if it were a bothersome gnat. "Goodness, no. Tom was one of my apprentices. He came to me after finishing school. He was clever, ambitious, driven. He seemed, for a time, a promising leader to take up the cause. I taught him a great deal, but he had no real interest in protecting other wizards, except in so far as it could benefit him. He cared only for himself and his obsession with immortality. Tom's arrogance has risked our broad exposure to the non-magical world more than anyone before him."

"But the wizards downstairs, they are Death Eaters, aren't they?"

"Most of them were, yes. But the loyalties of those who are ambitious, who long for power, and who have spent some time in prison are easily shifted." Roche winked. "They are my collaborators, now. Allies in a cause as old as wizarding. Not since before I signed the Statute of Secrecy has there been such a strong, united front of witches and wizards."

Kuro remembered hearing about the Statute of Secrecy in history class. It had been written hundreds of years ago. It made it illegal to let muggles know about magic. "What do you mean you signed it? That's impossible." said Kuro.

Roche smiled wryly, though unevenly. The one side of his face remained drooping and immobile. "Good ear, my boy. A very good ear," he said encouragingly. "I have delved deep and found magics to extend my life, though I must say I sometimes tire of it. I must endure, however, as long as the threat remains." He leaned back in his seat and Kuro wasn't sure if he or the chair creaked more. His eyes looked distant as he reminisced. "Yes, I was there. I was a member of the council that drafted the Statute of Secrecy a little more than three hundred years ago. At the time we thought it would be enough to keep us safe. We thought it easier to stay hidden than to fight back against the tide of muggliato fear and violence. We were fools. As their numbers have grown ours have remained static. They press on our borders and drive our kind deeper into hiding. With all of our power and knowledge, we are forced to live in fear. Does that seem right to you?"

"No, sir," said Kuro. He thought it a bad idea to anger the old wizard by disagreeing, but he also couldn't find much fault in the argument. Kuro had lived most of his life only a few steps from muggles. They were everywhere.

"And they've something near magic of their own," said Roche. He sounded more weary than angry or fearful. "Their technology has advanced so far in such a short time. Some of our kind are even helping them. They've bombs and firearms enough that if they turned their eyes to us we would not stand a chance. Their cameras are everywhere. Even careful wizards are being recorded. The ministry is hopelessly overwhelmed in their efforts to keep us secret."

There was a long expectant pause. Kuro wasn't sure what he was supposed to say. Edward rattled his bonds in surprise as Sprig finally reached the shackles on his hindquarters and started poking at the first of the locks. "What can we do?" Kuro said quickly, hoping to keep Roche distracted.

Roche's enthusiastic reaction told Kuro that he had asked the correct question. "We do what we should have done in the first place," said Roche. "We push back. We build an army."

"Is that why you're kidnapping students?" asked Kuro.

Roche laughed which made him cough and wheeze. He shook his head, smiling. "No, my boy. Not at all. I did not kidnap anyone. Those children were invited. They came willingly. Their parents wished to be reunited with their children. They were unjustly separated by a foolish regime. Families should be together, don't you agree?" Roche smiled kindly at Kuro and raised his bushy eyebrows quizzically.

Again, Kuro couldn't find fault in Roche's argument. "Yes, I suppose," he said. "But what about Edward?"

Kuro immediately regretted drawing any attention to Edward. Roche started to turn to look at the shackled wolf. Kuro stood on his chair and demanded "Was he invited?" loudly and angrily to regain the old wizard's attention.

Roche looked back in surprise. "My goodness," he laughed, turning back to Kuro. "Such anger. Such loyalty. No, my boy, that was a terrible misunderstanding. Young Mr. Selwin was a little over-eager to prove himself and went a bit too far. He misunderstood our cause rather badly, I must say. Regrettably, I've had to restrain young Mr. Lupin as he has been rather viciously uncooperative thus far."

"That's not..." Bindal squeaked, but Roche cut him off.

"Hush now Bindal," he said with a bit more of an edge to his voice than had been there before. "Please don't interrupt. Just stay where you are and let us speak to each other. Thank you."

Kuro bristled at Roche's carefully chosen words. Kuro knew orders when he heard them. They might be honey coated and polite, but Bindal had no choice but to obey. "So are you going to send him back?" Kuro asked, seeing through Roche's pleasantries.

"Of course I will," he said pleasantly. "He'd be back already but for the slight distraction of your arrival. I commend the courage of your compatriots. However misguided, their intentions are noble."

Kuro's hopes that the rest of the jailbreak was unknown to Roche were dashed. Roche read the disappointment and worry on his face with ease. "Worry not, he said. Your friends are in no real danger. My people have been instructed not to harm them. They'll be captured, their memories modified slightly, then returned to somewhere safe. We are not in the business of hurting our own kind."

"Why are you modifying their memories?" asked Kuro.

"This fortress is serving us well," said Roche. "It is isolated and nearly impenetrable. Furthermore, the Aurors continue to deliver allies to us to bolster our numbers. However, we are not yet ready for the rest of the wizarding world to know about us, here."

"Don't they already know?" said Kuro. "We all have the trace on us. We've been casting spells all morning. The ministry must know. There will be aurors on their way." He felt rather clever for having outsmarted the old man.

"You are a sharp boy," applauded Roche. "But that is something I considered before bringing any children here. Let me tell you a secret." He leaned in and said in a gravelly whisper, "I don't keep all of my allies in Azkaban. Some are at the ministry right now quietly silencing any alarms that might come from the prison."

A metallic clink caught Kuro's attention. Sprig had picked the shackles free of Edward's hind legs and they clunked softly to the rug below. "What about me?" asked Kuro quickly, before Roche had a chance to investigate the sound.

"Well, now, that's up to you." Master Roche pulled himself up out of his chair and hobbled around his desk, leaning heavily on a gnarled staff. He leaned against the desk and looked down paternally at Kuro. "But I'm rather hoping you'd choose to stay."

"Why would I do that?" asked Kuro.

Roche smiled warmly, but there was a dark glint in his eye. "Because here you would get the respect you deserve," he said encouragingly. "You're the first of your kind. There can be more like you. Wouldn't you like that? You could be a leader of your people. A general in the army. You could be so much more than a freak and an outcast like you are at that school. You could be a hero."

That offer was cruelly tempting. The idea that all of the mockery and loneliness and fear that haunted him at Hogwarts could be replaced with purpose and respect was enticing. The thought of others like him, people he had something in common with, people that looked like him, it was all too good to be believed.

"Before you make a decision, I have a gift for you." Roche grinned menacingly and produced something from a pocket of his heavy blue robes. He held it out in his shriveled, bony hand for Kuro to inspect. Kuro recognized it immediately and his breath caught in his throat.

It was a wand: long, pointed, ebony. It was the wand that Phineas had used for his darkest acts: to murder, to punish, to torture. It was at the centre of all of Kuro's nightmares. Even being in a room with it sent chills down his spine.

"You know it, yes?" said Roche knowingly. "It's yours. You can do with it as you wish. Keep it, destroy it, use it, or grind it up and eat it on toast, if you like." He paused almost long enough for Kuro to ask why before continuing. "But I imagine I know what you would like to do with it."

He waved his staff toward the strange metal statue in the corner and it opened down the middle. A body tumbled out of it.

It was a man, haggard and starved. He squinted at the sudden brightness of the room after the blackness of his confinement and weakly struggled to crawl to safety. Kuro had no sympathy for the pathetic efforts of the man, though. It was Phineas Hearn.

"He's at your mercy, Kuro," whispered Roche into Kuro's ear as he guided him by the shoulders to stand over the struggling heap of his former master. "He's betrayed us both, Kuro. His hubris, his arrogance, his cruelty... You can pay him back for all those years of suffering. You can take your revenge. You can be the powerful one."

Even with him weak and wasted, cowering on the floor at his feet, Kuro was still afraid of Phineas. He was afraid to hear his words, that his curse would still be there and he would have to punish himself for all of the disloyalty he had shown. He was afraid of the hands that might reach out to beat him, or that might grab the terrible wand and inflict suffering simply for Hearn's amusement.

Kuro took up the wand, hand trembling to touch the accursed object. It twitched in his hand as though it sensed his fear. He wanted to break it. He wanted to throw it out the window. He wanted it to never have existed. But deep down, he knew that Roche was right about him. He wanted to use it. He wanted Phineas to suffer like he had, to know the pain that he had put Kuro through. Kuro pointed the wand, levelled it at Hearn's head. He knew what he wanted to cast, but he hesitated.

Hearn was whimpering like a child. "Please, no. No more. No more..."

Hearn was broken. The man Kuro had known was not the one on the ground. He had already been destroyed by whatever Roche had done to him. The revenge felt empty. Even so, the desire still welled inside of Kuro to hurt the man. The unforgivable curses paraded through his mind: cruciatus, imperius, and the killing curse. Kuro could make him suffer, he could make him obey, he make him die. The wand wanted him to. Kuro wanted to. The words started to form on his lips.

As Kuro stood trembling over him, Phineas's eyes went wide in astonishment, but he was not looking at either Roche or Kuro. He was looking past them to the corner where Edward was Shackled. Kuro couldn't let him draw attention to his friend. "Crucio!"

Kuro poured his hate and anger at Phineas into the wand and it responded eagerly. Hearn writhed and gasped in pain. Kuro felt ill as he watched the man suffer, but at the same time the power was intoxicating. Part of him wanted to push it more, another wished he had never uttered the curse. He struggled with himself and the wand for several long seconds before he was able to tear the wand away and break the curse.

Phineas whimpered and choked. Tears, streamed over his face as he continued to convulse from the memory of the pain. Kuro gagged in horror at what he had done and felt tears streaming down his own face. He looked at the wand that took so much glory in suffering and destruction. He was repulsed to even hold it anymore. He took it by both ends and slammed it down over his knee, breaking it in half.

He looked upon the broken wand in victory. It would never hurt another person.

"Well done, my boy," said Roche. Kuro jumped. He had been so absorbed in what he was doing that the rest of the room, the rest of the world had been forgotten. "He deserved much more, but your mercy speaks well of your character. You will make a fine addition to our army."

Kuro looked up at the crooked man smiling proudly down at him and then around at Bindal, held silent and motionless by a simple order, then to Edward.

Edward was free from his restraints but kept as quiet and unmoving as Bindal. Edward looked back in horror at Kuro, as much for breaking the only wand they had as for casting an unforgivable curse.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Roche," said Kuro wiping tears on his sleeve. "I don't think I want to stay. Thank you for the invitation, but I would like to leave now."

The pleasant warmth drained from Master Roche. "You won't reconsider," he said gravely.

"No," said Kuro. "Definitely not. I don't ever want to hurt anyone again."

"A pity, you would have made a great wizard and a fine soldier," said Roche, gripping his staff more tightly. "I was hoping that you would stay voluntarily. I do dislike coercion when it can be avoided. However I do have other ways of making you stay, and If nothing else, your body should be valuable for research."

"You're wrong," said Kuro trying to stall a couple moments longer and keep the wizard distracted.

Roche paused, his curiosity piqued. "Oh?" he said.

"I'm not a soldier." Kuro subtly reached a hand into his bag while vigorously pointing the other at Roche to keep his attention. "Or a wizard. Or a hero. You should have asked Phineas before you locked him up."

"And what are you then?" Roche asked. Kuro could feel the magic swirling around Roche now, dark and powerful, but Kuro was gathering his own, letting it gather in his feet and swell behind him.

"I'm just a lousy thief." Kuro pulled open a drawer in his satchel, releasing the boggart. At the same time he released all of the energy he'd been building up and flung himself across the room.

"Potter!" Roche bellowed. "Spying this whole time? You'll regret coming here!"

Kuro smacked into the far wall rather harder than he planned, having been distracted by the cry of 'Potter'. He turned to see his boggart had taken the form of the auror, though bigger and more menacing than Kuro remembered him.

It wouldn't fool him for long, but it was enough of a distraction. Kuro scooped up Sprig and grabbed Bindal by the hand.

"Avada kadavra!" bellowed Roche. A vibrant green flash illuminated the room. Kuro turned, fearful that he might have just sent the little boggart to its death. He was spun around, though, by the force of the smoky form of the retreating creature diving back into its drawer in his bag.

"A boggart?" Roche laughed darkly. His ancient, lopsided face was twisted in grim exhilaration. He was enjoying himself. "Well done, boy. Any other tricks up your sleeve?"

Kuro hesitated only for a moment. "Maybe," he said. 

Kuro felt the room around him, the air felt heavy with the water that could pour out if only he let it. "How long can you hold your breath?" 

Kuro opened the floodgates. He let it flow more than he ever had before. More than had flooded the washroom in his lessons with Bindal, more even than had rained down at the winter ball. Icy water gushed from everywhere all at once, filling the room in seconds, dousing the fire and candles and leaving them all floating in icy blackness.

Kuro kept a tight hold on Bindal and kicked for all he was worth towards Edward but he was no swimmer. His lungs begged for air in seconds, his robes dragged him down, and the Bindal felt like a sack of bricks.

Edward, however, was a swimmer. Kuro felt Edward grab him in his jaws and start to drag him towards the surface, but Kuro didn't need to be rescued. He had just needed to find his friends. 

Kuro held on tightly to Bindal and grabbed on to Edward's fur. Kuro tried to relax enough to feel for the door. It was there in the room, struggling to stay closed against the weight of the water, wishing it could open and release the pressure. It was already unlocked; Sprig had seen to that. All needed was permission, a bit of magical encouragement, and it would let go. With a gentle nod from Kuro, the heavy chamber door burst open and they were swept out in the torrent of escaping water.


	25. An Unexpected Auror

Kuro gasped for breath as he washed out onto hard ground, water still pouring out of the room. Bindal landed on top of him, coughing and sputtering. Edward groaned and rolled over. Free of his shackles and the effects of the full moon, his fur receded and his limbs started returning to their normal boyish form.

They were high up atop Azkaban. The warden's office sat in a large turret along the ramparts of the prison. The biting wind of the North Sea chilled them as they struggled to their feet.

Kuro didn't waste a moment. He let the the door slam closed again before Roche could follow them, and let the water continue to fill the warden's office. It didn't have to stall Roche long, just enough to get Edward into the satchel.

There was barely a moment to breathe, though, before the door to the warden's office exploded. A tsunami of granite, steel and icy water swept over them and carried them further along the ramparts. They clung to each other to keep from being swept over the edge.

Phineas floated along with them, his eyes rolled back in his head. As they washed along his face began to change, Phineas' features melted away revealing a sickly and wasted man. It wasn't even Phineas, and Kuro had the sickening sense that he had killed him.

"Do you have any idea what you have done?" spat Roche as he clambered out of the destroyed office. "Those books were irreplaceable! Ruined! You idiot child. You'd have been lucky to drown. I'll rewrite them in your blood."

The wave petered out and they drifted to a stop at feet of another wizard. Kuro saw the heavy leather boots of auror, one of the disguised Death eaters pretending to be a guard. Kuro picked himself up. Too cold and weak to put up much of a fight, but he wasn't going to face his death lying down.

The man passed him by, though, putting himself between them and Roche. Kuro spun to look at the man. He was short, lithe, with messy black hair and a wand in each hand.

"Do you really think I will fall for the same trick again, my boy?" Roche snarled. "Do you take me for a fool? Riddikulus!"

The spell bounced harmlessly off the auror, who responded with his own. "Expelliarmus!" shouted Potter.

"Protego," responded Roche, surprised but too skilled to be caught off guard. Potter's spell flared harmlessly off Roshe's magical barrier.

Kuro stared in shock and confusion as Potter and Roche began to duel. A gout of flame from Roche was stymied by an icy gale from Potter which Roche manipulated to freeze the water around him into lances of ice which he pelted at the group.

"Get them out of here, Teddy!" Potter shouted desperately as the shards of ice shattered on a conjured shield.

Edward, wet, freezing, and still too shocked to follow orders didn't move. Kuro, however, was an expert at running away. He threw Bindal over his shoulder grabbed Edward's hand and bolted. 

Edward's feet figured out what needed to be done before his mind did. Soon he was outpacing Kuro, who was burdened with the extra weight of Bindal. They ran as fast as their feet would take them, catching glimpses of the raging battle as they went.

A huge stone giant made from the rock of the prison took swings at Potter who dodged nimbly as he rained down lightening all around Roche. Blinding flashes of light and thunderous explosions filled the air.

Once far enough away that they were out of immediate danger, they staggered to a stop, soaked, wandless and gasping for breath. "Bindal, please," Kuro begged. "You need to take us back to the others. We need to get out of here?"

Bindal could do nothing. He shook his head and pointed vigorously at Kuro.

"Me?" said Kuro. "I can't do it. I don't know where I'm going well enough. We wouldn't make it."

Bindal grabbed Kuro's hand and tapped his foot impatiently.

"What's going on Kuro?" asked Edward. "Who is this? What are you doing?"

"This is my friend, Bindal," said Kuro. "He's the one that brought me here to save you."

"That was really stupid," said Edward, sounding impressed. "Can't he bring us back?"

"No," said Kuro, shaking his head. "He can't... but I can."

"What? How?" Edward was as much curious as he was doubtful.

"I can apparate," said Kuro. "Like a house elf. But I can only go places I know. It might go wrong."

"How wrong?"

"We might not come out the other side."

The whole of Azkaban was beginning to shudder under the weight of the battle raging on the other wall. Cracks were forming in the granite and a storm of fire, ice and lightning was growing overhead.

"Well we're definitely going to die if we stay here," said Edward.

Kuro swallowed the lump of dread that was forming in his throat. "Okay, I'll try. You need to ride in the bag. Take Sprig." Kuro poured out the water from his satchel and laid it out for Edward to crawl into. Then he took his little bowtruckle from his pocket, waterlogged and coughing and handed it to Edward.

"If we don't make it," said Edward shakily, "thanks for coming, anyway."

He climbed into the soggy satchel and Kuro threw it over his shoulder. He took Bindal's hand and closed his eyes, trying to focus on where he needed to go. "I know you can't take me there, Bindal, but I could use a little push."

Bindal held Kuro's hand tightly as the world exploded away from him and they spun like an unravelling jumper into nothingness. Time stretched and his body felt like it was moving in several different directions at once. He could feel Bindal's grip though, almost real in the nothing space, holding him together.

With a thunderous crack they snapped back into being solid in the Prison cafeteria where he had left the others.

It was little more than smoke and rubble but shouts from down the hall let him know that the fight was ongoing.

Kuro didn't know if he could get to them, but he was going to try. First he had to get rid of his passengers, though. Edward was wet and wandless, and Bindal couldn't move or speak due to his orders.

Kuro let himself fall back into nothingness and be pulled toward the safe and familiar space of the Myrtle's lavatory. They snapped back into being just above the marble floor. It had only been a moment in the spaces between, but in that place without time or material, his body too easily forgets how to be a physical thing. He released Bindal, dumped Edward from his satchel and staggered to his feet.

"Are we back?" asked Edward excitedly. "Are we safe."

"You are," said Kuro. "The others, though. I need to go get them. Keep Bindal safe."

"What others?" Kuro heard Edward say as he Disapparated again.

He wasn't certain that he could make it on his own. If he didn't, though, his friends were doomed. That feeling held him together, kept him focused as he was swept along the currents of emptiness.

He emerged back in the dusty rubble of the cafeteria. He felt the blood start to move again in his veins and his heartbeat rang loudly in his ears. It had not been easy or pleasant, but he was there and he was whole.

Kalliste was cowering in a corner, quietly deciding whether to raise an alarm at Kuro's intermittent presence. Kuro ignored her.

He slung his satchel over his shoulder and dashed towards the noise of fighting. He came up quickly on Jordan Selwyn, He was doubled over vomiting slugs and covered in boils. Kuro flung himself at the unsuspecting boy, knocking him sprawling. He grabbed his wand and kept running.

He couldn't concentrate enough to make Jordan's wand obey him, but it was still a pointed stick. He thrust it into the leg of a large man disguised as an auror as he passed. His cries of pain drew the attention of another up ahead. The moment of distraction was enough for a jet of red to sneak past her defenses and stun her.

As he pushed through the smoke and rubble he saw the backs of a dozen men and women hurling spells Kuro had never seen before. They were barricaded behind a pile of rubble, doors, and tables. Beyond them was a small courtyard in which Dementors swirled, challenging the shining patronuses that defended the far side.

Past the patronuses must be his friends. He could barely see their barricade through the smoke and fire and swirling robes of the dementors. He couldn't apparate if he didn't know where he was going, so he ran.

He dashed up over the Death Eater's barricade and leaped into the courtyard, dodging spells from both sides, fire from the sky, and dementors as he ran. He felt the icy hopelessness of a dementor descend around him and he staggered, the pointlessness of his efforts suddenly so clear. As quickly as it had overtaken him, the ennui was washed away from a hope and joy that was not his own. A raging apparition of a badger slashed at the nearest dementor. Mary's Patronus urged Kuro forward and chased away the dementors that dared approach him.

With a final burst of effort, he launched himself over the far barricade. A stunning spell caught him in the arm and sent him spinning. He landed in a heap at the feet of his allies, his arm numb and limp at his side.

"Kuro!" said Charlie who was leaning heavily against a wall, her face scratched and bloodied. "You're alive." She was too exhausted to be properly happy about it.

"You too!" Kuro beamed.

He looked around. Everyone was still alive, though it wasn't clear how long that would last. They had collected a couple more of the real guards, but they were well outnumbered. Everyone looked wounded. Victoire and Azalea were wandless. They held each other tightly while shielding an unmoving Antimonie, who was either magically paralyzed or catatonic with fear. 

It didn't matter which, Kuro thought, she was a good place to start, thought Kuro. He shoved his bag roughly over Antimonie's head and urged Victoire and Azalea inside.

He took in the surroundings as best he could so he might have a chance at returning in one piece. "I'll be back," he said and disapparated.

He apparated back into Myrtle's washroom startling Edward and Bindal. He didn't pause to give the explanation that Edward was demanding. He just dumped the three girls ungraciously onto the floor and disapparated again.

It was even easier to go back than he'd expected. He could follow the threads of his last journey, snapping back into the dust and smoke right where he'd left.

"Charlie! Mary! Get in!" Said Kuro holding out the satchel.

"We can't leave," said Mary. "They need us."

"You bloody well can," shouted Ms. Crawley. Sensing rebellion, she continued, "We'll do a lot better if we don't have children we need to protect."

Dejected at their ejection from the battle, Mary and Charlie crawled in. "You too she said, shoving Leonard and Bella towards Kuro."

"Us t too wh what?" stammered Leonard. Apparently there hadn't yet been time to brief him on their escape plan.

Bella grabbed the lanky boy and shoved him into the sack. Sliding in after him. She was clearly annoyed at having to rely on Kuro, but not enough to argue.

As Kuro threw the strap awkwardly over his shoulder with is one functioning arm he heard Ms. Crawley say, "That's the last of the students, Kuro. Don't you dare come..."

Kuro disapparated. Not caring to hear her warnings.

In a snap they were back at Hogwarts. Kuro rushed them out onto the tiled floor. The normally abandoned washroom was getting quite crowded. Kuro saw the door fly open and the faces of Filch and McGonagall appear before he vanished again.

When he arrived back at Azkaban, the barricade had been abandoned. The four aurors had caved-in the hallway and fled, but dementors were already starting to seep through the holes in the rubble.

Kuro was exhausted. Bindal had never told him how tiring apparition could be. He pressed himself to chase after them, fleeing the creeping cold of the dementors behind him, ignoring the ache in his stunned and useless arm, and the horrible cold that soaked through his wet clothing.

The slowest of the aurors was moving with a limp. He heard Kuro coming and turned to cast. Kuro didn't bother waiting to explain, he shoved the bag over the man's head and kept running. A flash of light and some confused profanity escaped the bag but Kuro kept running.

"Ms. Crawley," he gasped as he caught up with the rest of the adults. He was so tired that his legs were threatening to collapse from under him. "Could you please stop for a moment."

"Kuro, you bloody fool. You're going to get yourself killed." She responded.

"Not if you hurry up and get in the bag," begged Kuro.

She and the other three stopped and checked behind them. "Expecto Patronum!" shouted Crawley. A great horned owl swooped out of her wand and down the hall, holding the dementors at bay. "I'll hold them off. You two get in."

"This is embarassing," complained the first as she clambered awkwardly into the satchel.

"I won't tell anyone if you don't," said the man Crawley had been calling Fletch as he followed.

"Go!" said Crawley.

"Not without you!" refused Kuro. He held the bag open at her feet.

She cursed as she tried to hold focus on her patronus. "Damn it, Kuro!" She took a step and hopped in. Her patronus winked out as she fell into the bag. Kuro shut his eyes and disapparated as the wave of Dementors swept over him.

The hopelessness stayed with him as he travelled. He almost let go of the bag, almost let go of himself. It seemed easier to just stop being than to keep fighting, to keep living.

He fell out into the washroom and tossed down the bag. He was so tired. He just wanted to stop.

"That's everyone," said someone. It didn't even matter who anymore. "You did it!"

"Not yet," he mumbled. "One more."

He took up his bag and vanished. Back to the ramparts where he and Edward had first disapparated. The battle was still raging, but it was decidedly lopsided. Potter was on the defensive, driving away dementors with one wand and defending himself from Roche with the other.

The sky was on fire and the wall they were on was starting to crumble away. Kuro didn't know if he had the strength or skill to jump in and save Potter. He could only watch.

He saw Roche, casting in controlled, calculating motions. There was a cold calmness to him that made him appear even more terrifying in the chaotic tumult. He raised his staff high and brought it down hard. The ground beneath Potter split and exploded sending him soaring from the edge along with the limp body of the man that had worn the face of Phineas Hearn.

Kuro didn't even think. He just reacted. In an instant he had apparated and was falling too, rubble bouncing off of him as he fell beside Potter and the stranger. The roiling sea far below welcoming them to a watery grave.

Potter was wounded, his head bleeding. He looked at Kuro in confusion and fought against him as he grabbed hold and tried to shove him in his bag. "Stop struggling. I'm saving you."

Potter was bigger and stronger and refused the aid. He reached out for the limp body of the unnamed man that had been Phineas, shoving him awkwardly into the bag. "Leave nobody behind," he slurred out.

"You're daft! You're saving a corpse." complained Kuro, the water rushing up to meet them at terrifying speeds. Potter was taking too long and Kuro had little choice but to help the concussed auror wrangle the body into the satchel.

Once the man was inside Potter reached to do the same for Kuro, misunderstanding entirely what was happening. Kuro wriggled free and kicked at his face, forcing him down into the satchel while desperately trying to gather enough magic to slow their descent. He managed to force the flap closed and disapparate just as they crashed into the frothing sea.

They reappeared in the washroom at Hogwarts, still travelling at near fatal speeds. Kuro saw the sterile white room only for a moment before he hit the floor. Something that sounded like a cheer erupted in the room before everything faded to black.


	26. An Adamantine Bracelet

Kuro only had the vaguest sense of the passage of time. He floated in and out of consciousness for either hours or days, he couldn't tell. There was pain sometimes, but mostly he felt numb. He had a wavering sense of others being around, of hushed voices infiltrating his vivid nightmares, and of someone holding his hand and stroking his hair.

It was uncomfortably bright in the room when he finally woke. The offensively cheerful afternoon sun of late spring hurt his eyes. He groaned and put his hands up, trying to block it out. As he became accustomed to the light, he saw the sterile whiteness of the too familiar hospital wing come into focus around him. He was not alone. There were others in nearby beds, adults from the looks of them.

"You're awake," said someone softly beside him. "How do you feel?"

Kuro looked over to find Ms. Crawley smiling worriedly at him from a chair next to his bed. She was much more the woman he remembered. She was back to wearing her fitted dueling robes and her hair was neatly cropped and tidy. Her time in Azkaban was still visible in her face, though. She was pale and thin and there were deep circles under her sharp eyes.

Kuro spent some time taking stock of his body. He was achy and stiff, but uninjured. He felt heavy and sluggish, too like he was moving through molasses. It was probably from being in bed too long. "I feel okay," said Kuro, trying to stretch away the lethargy. "How is everyone else?"

"Everyone is fine," assured Ms. Crawley. "We all made it back. You did great."

"What about Bindal? Is Bindal okay?" Kuro asked urgently, remembering that his elven friend could be called back by his master at any time, or that he might be punishing himself within an inch of his life for his betrayal.

"Bindal? Is that the young elf you saved? Yes, he's fine. He's being looked after by another elf." Ms. Crawley pushed him back gently, encouraging Kuro to rest. "Lay back until Madame Pomfrey can come see you. You had a rather rough landing. There's still a dent shaped like you in that washroom," she joked trying to hide her concern for Kuro.

"I didn't save him," corrected Kuro as he pushed away Ms. Crawley attempts to get him to lie down. "He saved you."

"Then I'm grateful to him," she said. "I'm glad to be free of that place, and I'm happy to be back here. I've missed Hogwarts."

"Do you get to stay this time," asked Kuro hopefully.

Ms. Crawley mussed Kuro's hair and smiled warmly. "No, not at Hogwarts, anyway. But I can't very well be sent back to Azkaban either. I'm a special informant to the head auror due to my inside knowledge of the situation at Azkaban." She recited it like she was reading it off a scroll. "It's Potter's doing. It will keep me free and helping to do some good, but I'm afraid I can't come back to teach just yet."

"Would you want to if you could?" asked Kuro.

She looked at Kuro with more warmth and affection than his tired heart could handle. "More than you could know," she said. Rubbing her eyes and taking a deep breath, she changed the subject as Kuro looked to be trying to get out of bed. "Did you really teach that elf to cast a patronus charm?"

"Yes?" said Kuro warily, uncertain if he was in trouble.

"That's incredible," she applauded. "I knew you had a knack for Defence Against the Dark Arts."

Kuro felt embarrassed by the praise. "I don't, really. I can't even cast it myself."

"Then it's doubly impressive. It's hard enough teaching someone to cast a spell that you can cast." She smiled proudly at him. "You could be a teacher someday."

Kuro was done lying down. As nice as it was to talk with Ms. Crawley again, he needed to see the others with his own eyes. He wouldn't believe that he hadn't dreamed it all until he could hear Charlie telling an exaggerated version of the whole ordeal.

Despite Crawley's protests, he pushed himself out of bed. His bare feet landed heavily on the cold floor. He felt like he weighed a thousand pounds. He expected it was the lingering effects of whatever potions Madame Pomfrey had used to heal him and dull the pain. His right arm, where he had been caught by the stunning spell, felt particularly leaden.

He looked more carefully around the room. None of his friends were there. He hoped that was a good sign. The tall blond auror that Mr. Avery had been disguised as was in one bed and beamed when he saw Kuro emerge.

"Our savior awakes! Justin Finch-Fletchley, pleased to make your acquaintance" he said, reaching out to shake hands. "That was quite a thing you did for us. Can't thank you enough."

"I didn't do that much. The others did all the fighting." said Kuro.

The auror laughed. "Good lad. You do our house proud. Don't downplay what you've done though, or Potter will take all the credit."

"Is our little hero up and about?" Said a woman a couple beds down. She had an unusually kind face for an auror and was being attended to rather lovingly by Professor Longbottom. "Hannah Abbott," she added reaching out a hand to greet Kuro just as Justin had. "Thank you for the rescue."

"I wasn't even there when you got rescued," said Kuro. He wandered over to shake her hand, too.

He noticed something shiny rattling around his wrist as she shook his hand vigorously. It was a metal bracelet of some kind. He didn't have much time to think on it though before he was spun around by a third auror.

He was older than the other two and rather badly disfigured from magical scars that were still healing. "Everett Rancor," he said taking Kuro's hand. "Thank you for getting me out of that blasted place."

"You're welcome," said Kuro as he was jostled about vigorously by the big man.

There was one adult that did not get up to introduce himself, though he waved Kuro over weakly. Kuro recognized him as the man that had been made to look like Phineas, the one Kuro had nearly let fall to his death. He looked very unwell and like he had been that way for quite some time. His skin hung about his face and neck as though it were made for a much bigger man. His hair was thinning unevenly and he trembled as he moved.

"I am Birtram Struthers, the warden of Azkaban," the man said weakly. The very act of speaking seemed to exhaust him. " I understand that I have you to thank for saving me," he said weakly.

"I don't think so," said Kuro. "That was mostly Potter. I nearly killed you," Kuro gagged at the memory. "I cast an unforgivable curse at you."

"And yet I live..." he said quietly. "And yet I can forgive you. You rescued me from a slow and miserable death. Roche had me Polyjuiced to look like Phineas Hearn in case of inspections. He'd throw me in a cell for a couple of hours when the ministry was about. I think he enjoyed watching aurors pass me over as a prisoner. You rejected him and saved me. Roche is a master at manipulating people. He plays on their darkest desires, wins their loyalty through deception. You were strong to resist his offers."

"Not strong enough," refused Kuro, remembering how much he wanted to hurt Phineas, how he was willing to let the stranger fall to his death. "If it wasn't for Potter..."

"If it wasn't for Potter," the warden chuckled. "Do you know how often I hear that? He's not the only hero in the wizarding world, you know. There are, at the very least, two." The sickly man winked and then closed his eyes, tired from conversing.

"You look well," said Potter, having crept up right behind Kuro.

Kuro jumped in surprise, but only a few inches. He tripped and fell as he hit the ground again much sooner than he expected.

"How do you feel?" asked Potter as though he knew something more than he was letting on.

"Heavy," said Kuro struggling to push himself up off the floor again. "Slow."

Potter lifted him to his feet as though he weighed nothing. "I was afraid of that," said potter grimly.

"What do you mean?" asked Kuro distrustfully.

"Have you noticed your new bracelet?" replied Potter, evading the question.

Kuro looked down at the metal bangle around his wrist. It gleamed in the sun, a brightly polished white metal. It was a single solid loop, thick as a finger and intricately carved with runes that glimmered in different colours as they caught the sun. He tried to take it off so he could get a better look at it, but it refused to slide over his hand.

"It's goblin made," said Potter. "A very old design. There's only one craftsgoblin in England that still knows how to make one. Solid adamantine, twelve layers of enchanted runes... That thing's worth more than my house."

"What is it?" said Kuro with growing fear of the thing attached to his wrist.

"It's an anchor," said Potter almost apologetically. "It's to keep you from apparating. They're meant for house elves that break the law, but there hasn't been one that's needed it in centuries."

"Why is it on me?" demanded Kuro as he struggled to get it off his wrist. "Why can't I take it off?"

"It's enchanted," sighed Potter. "Very well enchanted. You know you can apparate anywhere don't you. You're not supposed to be apparating at all until you're seventeen, you're apparating places you shouldn't be able to... You have to understand that this is the best I could do. There are people calling for more stringent restrictions on you."

"I saved you!" said Kuro, angry at being punished for his good deeds. "You were falling and I saved you and now I have to drag around this stupid anchor? It's not fair."

"No, it isn't," Potter agreed without a hint of remorse.

Kuro tried to apparate but it felt like he was trying to move the whole building when he did. He tried to jump but gravity seemed unwilling to release him and tugged him back down hard to the ground. Something occurred to him as he fought against the confines of the bracelet: if this was how he was being punished, but would they do to an actual elf that had committed real crimes?

"Where's Bindal?" Kuro demanded.

"He's fine, he's with Kreacher," said Potter soothingly.

"I want to see him." Kuro crossed his arms and tried to look determined.

Potter just made excuses. "I can't let you see him. He punishes himself whenever anyone but an elf walks into the room. He's not saying anything anyway."

"It's a good thing I'm not a proper wizard then," said Kuro. "Where is he?"

"He's just in the surgery over there but..."

Kuro didn't wait for Potter to finish. He stomped over to the small side room pushed his way inside.

Bindal was there being comforted by a very old and decrepit elf that Kuro had met in his fist hear. "Kreacher is not to be letting other persons or elves into the room. The master has ordered it." He said in a slow wheezy voice.

"Am I an elf or a person?" Asked Kuro, knowing how elves felt about him.

"No, the Kuro isn't one of those," Kreacher agreed. "The master wasn't saying anything about monsters." He turned to Bindal who remained mute and downcast. "Is the little Bindal wanting to see the monster. Should Kreacher be throwing him out? Kreacher could do that for him."

Bindal shook his head. He looked up and smiled weakly at Kuro.

"Are you okay?" asked Kuro.

Bindal nodded crookedly, not quite convinced of it himself. Kuro saw a sparkle of silver around the elf's skinny neck as he moved. It matched Kuros own bracelet.

"They put it on you like a collar? Like you're a dog?" Kuro was incensed.

Bindal just nodded sadly.

"Stupid wizardses."

Bindal nodded in somewhat more enthusiastic agreement.

"Why aren't you talking Bindal?" asked Kuro, starting to worry about his friend's extended silence.

Bindal made a variety of gestures of exasperation and annoyance. Kuro thought he got the point. 

"You were ordered to be quiet, right?" said Kuro.

Bindal nodded.

"But Roche said 'hush now' didn't he?" Kuro smirked slyly.

Bindal nodded more slowly, uncertain what Kuro was implying.

"He didn't say how long you had to hush for." Kuro's practice at getting around his own curse had made him quite skilled at finding holes in instructions. "I think we can all agree that 'now' has passed and it is later."

Kreacher nodded with a degree of approval at Kuro's interpretation and Bindal gasped in relief. "Bindal is so happy that the Kuro monster is living. Bindal is being very worried and none is telling Bindal anything."

"I'm happy that you're okay, too, Bindal."

"But Bindal is being a bad elf," he said flustered. "Bindal is betraying the master. I is leaving where I is. I is punishing myself much for that."

Kuro shook his head wisely. "You didn't leave, you were taken. And now you are here. So you should stay where you are, at Hogwarts."

Bindal beamed. He leaped from the bed and hugged Kuro vigorously. "Yes I is staying where I is at Hogwarts. I is a proper elf and I is following orders."

Kreacher interrupted. "The monster is clever, but it is not kind. The young elf cannot be seen by wizards."

"What did Roche tell you? What exactly did he say about being seen?"

Bindal scrunched up his face in thought for a few moments before doing a comical impersonation of Master Roche. "Elf! You are not to let any witch or wizard at Hogwarts see or hear you."

Kuro had to think for a minute on that one. He was more experienced than Bindal with being obediently disobedient. He found a gap in the oders, though. A small one. "Well then don't let them see you," said Kuro. "Either force them to see you or make sure they see you against your wishes."

"Clever monster," chuckled Kreacher.

Bindal jumped enthusiastically, but found himself to be much heavier than normal and nearly fell over.

"I'm sorry, Bindal," said Kuro sympathetically. "But look, I've got a matching one." he held up his wrist. "We're stuck on the ground together."

"Is not so bad," said Bindal with a slightly devious grin. "The master is calling. I cannot be going."

Before the pair had much of a chance to celebrate, Potter intruded. He threw open the door and brazenly strode in.

Bindal had a moment struggle where it looked like he was about to start pummeling himself, but instead he shouted at Potter. "I is not giving you permission to enter. I is not letting you see me."

"Agreed," said Potter.

"You were eavesdropping!" accused Kuro.

"Of course I was," said Potter unapologetically. "But it seems you have our little friend talking freely, so I won't need to anymore."

Kuro put himself between Potter and Bindal. "You keep away from him. He's been through enough."

Potter laughed. "I'm not going to do anything. Not that I could anyway without some serious repercussions. You're not my responsibility. There's someone you two need to meet. Come on."

"Before you go, I believe I have something that belongs to you," said Ms. Crawley. She stopped Kuro at the door and pulled his little twig-like wand. She presented it to him with reverence. "Thank you for everything."

"Anytime," said Kuro proudly.

Potter led the pair out of the hospital wing and out into the halls of Hogwarts. Kuro didn't much like the company of Potter and he liked less talking to him. Potter was being unusually quiet as they marched through the halls and Kuro didn't really want to interrupt that, but he felt it would be rude not to at least thank him for his timely arrival at the prison. "Thank you for coming to find us," said Kuro, trying to sound grateful.

"Just doing my job," Potter said with a carefully measured amount of false modesty. "I guess I should thank you for going. It might have taken much longer to find Teddy and the others if you hadn't."

"What do you mean?" asked Kuro.

"The trace," said Potter. "It led me right to you. Apparated a mile out and flew the rest of the way on my broom. Suppose that broom is naught but splinters and straw, now. It was a Firebolt; great broom. My uncle gave it to me years ago." Potter trailed off wistfully.

Potter's story rang suspiciously false. "Roche said he had someone at the ministry covering up those alarms."

"Ah, yes, we have some of our best people looking into that. Those responsible disappeared as soon as things started to go south for their side at Azkaban." Potter was avoiding something.

"But then how did you find us?" posed Kuro more directly.

Potter looked around for distraction but the hall was long and empty. "I had cause to be concerned for your well-being after last year," he said uncomfortably. "So I had a trace put on your wand and forwarded directly to me."

Kuro stopped walking and glared at Potter. "Is that why you've been popping up wherever I go all year? Is that why you're pretending to be a teacher at this school? You've been spying on me?"

"It was for your own protection," said Potter in his best authoritarian auror voice. "We received a tip that there would be a kidnapping attempt and that they might be after a half-breed."

"So you secretly put a special trace on me and followed me around all year?" accused Kuro, starting to storm down the hallway. "All the while other kids were getting kidnapped. They didn't even want me."

"It was a delicate operation," defended Potter. "We didn't want to expose that we had inside information."

"Well you didn't have much, did you?"

"No," admitted Potter. "Not nearly enough. Wrong kids, wrong half-breed. They were after Teddy. I should have seen it coming. He's pretty unique as a Were-metamorphmagi. Roche would love to run his tests on him, and he'd make a great hostage as my godson."

"So you wasted a whole year following me around when you could have been doing proper detective work."

"No, I wasted a whole year teaching classes and grading assignments," Potter groaned. "Do you have any idea how much time it takes to be a teacher? I was so busy I could barely keep track of you. Not to mention the fact that you are a wily little weasel. How do you get around the school so fast without using magic?"

They arrived at McGonagall's office door and stopped. "I do use magic," Kuro said plainly.

"No you don't," replied Potter with certainty. "Your trace hardly ever went off the whole year outside of class."

"Isn't it obvious, Mr. Head of the Aurors?" said Kuro contemptuously. He had just worked it out himself, but enjoyed knowing something Potter didn't. "The trace doesn't work if I don't use my wand. Elf magic doesn't need a wand."

Kuro turned from the stunned looking Auror and boldly pushed open the door to McGonagall's office. It swung open to an argument in process.

Sabine El-Asar, Kuro's case worker was in heated debate with a woman that he didn't know. "He's a perfectly ordinary boy. You've no jurisdiction, here," said Sabine curtly.

"It's the opinion of the ministry that he is not," said the other woman. She had frizzy hair and sharp eyes and spoke with dismissive certainty. "All non-human magical beings fall under the purview of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures."

McGonagall was sitting behind her desk looking like she had been tolerating the argument for some time. She cleared her throat to get the attention of the other women as Kuro entered. "We have company."

Potter ushered Kuro and Bindal into the room and two chairs appeared for them. McGonagall's office was spartan as always. Enough chairs for everyone to sit were arranged around her desk and she leafed through a few sheets of paper. There were two items on the desk that hadn't been there on Kuro's previous visit: A large vase of elegantly arranged flowers, and Kuro's satchel.

Potter guided them to the chairs and made introductions "Everyone, this is Bindal. He is here very much against his will."

Bindal nodded vigorously to confirm to everyone that it was true.

"Bindal, this is Professor McGonagall, Sabine El-Asar, and the head of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, Hermione Granger."

Kuro wasn't certain what that title meant, but Bindal looked frightened. Kuro held his hand, as if that would to any good.

"Thank you Harry," said the Granger Woman. Her manner softened considerably as she turned and knelt in front of Bindal.

Bindal pushed himself back into his chair and Kuro could feel him trying impotently to apparate. He seemed more afraid of this woman than of his master.

"Bindal," she said softly. "Do you know who I am?"

Bindal nodded. "You is from Creature Control. You is making bad elves disappear," he said.

The Granger woman looked saddened from the accusation. "Not anymore," she said. "Things have changed... a little. But we do enforce the law as it relates to non-human magical beings. You have been involved in some things that would place you in our authority to prosecute."

Kuro got the impression that the woman was trying to simplify her language for Bindal and was still barely making sense.

"Given your help in recent events though, your age, and the nature of your curse," she continued, "there is general agreement that you cannot be held responsible for the crimes. However, it would be likewise grossly irresponsible to allow you to go back to your master, given his involvement in criminal activities. Therefore, we need to restrict your mobility for both your protection and that of others. However, we have come to an arrangement that we hope you will find agreeable. We will recuse you into the care of Headmistress McGonagall under the supervision of the Hogwarts elves. Do you understand?"

Bindal relaxed slowly as he chewed over the collection of words that the ministry woman had just poured over him. "Bindal can be living at Hogwarts?"

"Yes," she said smiling hopefully.

"Bindal is not being punished?"

"No," she confirmed.

"Bindal is saying with Kuro monster?"

"Ah," she said uncertainly. "That is a little more complicated." she turned to Kuro looking uncomfortable to face him.

Sabine interrupted before she had a chance to launch into another speech. "There's nothing complicated about it. You've already done enough slapping that cuff on him."

Granger shot her a withering glare before turning back to Kuro. "You are something of an unfortunate anomaly..."

"That's a terrible thing to say," defended Sabine.

"Legally speaking," added Granger. "You are technically classified as non-human. This could have previously been ignored like other part-humans, but your origins are adequately in question that many in the department believe you are better classified as a part-elf."

"The Kuro monster is no proper elf." said Bindal offended at the suggestion.

"The protests from the elven community have been heard," said Granger trying to calm Bindal. "The issue that I am having difficulty navigating is that there are currently legal provisions against wandedness and education of those of elven descent."

"What does that mean?" asked Kuro, only partly understanding her strange way of speaking.

"It means there's a two-thousand-year-old law that means I might be forced to take your wand, and that you may not be able to stay at Hogwarts." She looked genuinely remorseful.

Kuro felt tears welling up in his eyes. After everything, he was going to be expelled. Not for his crimes or his poor grades, but because of what he was.

Bindal stood on the back of his chair so his eyes were level with Granger's. "I is telling you that Kuro is no elf. He is a monster. Not elf or wizard. He is not part of elf law. He is should be staying." It was a touching, if slightly insulting defense.

Granger and Sabine both seemed moved by the passion of the little elf, but Kuro knew it wouldn't help. Wizard laws did not care much about the opinions of elves.

"If I may interrupt," said McGonagall, still inspecting the sheaf of parchment before her. "I would like Ms. Granger's opinion on something."

The room fell silent. There was something about the way the Headmistress spoke that made it impossible not to. "I have been reviewing the laws in question. While it has been quite some time since my time as a prosecutor at the ministry, I believe you may be in error."

Granger looked affronted at the suggestion but remained quiet.

"Regarding wandedness. It is certainly illegal for any elf to possess a wand of their own, but unless I am mistaken, the wand in Kuro's possession is on permanent loan from the Ministry. He does not own it. Furthermore, the wording on education says that nobody of elven descent can initiate wizarding education. It says nothing about continuing the education if by some accident the education has already begun."

Granger rolled her eyes. "Professor, you can't imagine that is the intended interpretation of those laws."

"Ms. Granger," McGonagall said slyly, looking over her spectacles. "I cannot speak to the intention of the law. But the letter of the law seems quite clear. Wouldn't you agree."

A slow smile crept across Granger's face. "You are, of course, correct. The department must act in accordance with the letter of the law."

The adults in the room all looked very pleased with themselves but Kuro wasn't sure he'd understood fully.

"Does that mean I can stay?" he asked.

"Yes," said Granger much more happily than before. "You can stay. You can keep your wand. If nothing else I can keep the ministry so tied up in paperwork that you'll have graduated before they get it sorted out."

"Sabine," Granger continued. "He is technically my responsibility now."

Sabine looked dubious but not angry as she had before. "I think you'll find that he is still an orphan in the care of the ministry. He may be under your Jurisdiction, but he's still my responsibility. I'll not abandon him due to some accident of his heritage."

Kuro expected another fight to erupt, but Granger just smiled. "I'm glad to hear it."

"Great, all's well that ends well," said Potter, having grown tired of not being in control of the conversation. "Now if we can just get him to stop doing things that might get him killed," he joked.

Granger and McGonagall gave Potter such a scathing look that he shriveled beneath it. Kuro couldn't help but laugh at Potter being cowed.

Potter tried to recover some dignity and authority as he made his retreat. "We should be getting back to the Ministry, Hermione," he said.

"I take it I'm going to need to find another Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, then Professor Potter?" said McGonagall in annoyance.

"I'm sorry Minerva," sighed Potter. "I really thought for a while that I'd actually be able to stay, but duty calls. Roche has Azkaban and a small army at his command, agents in the ministry, and who knows what else."

McGonagall sighed and waved the auror away. "Would you mind terribly showing Bindal to the elf residences, Harry," she said. "I would like a word with Kuro."

Bindal smiled optimistically at Kuro before being shuffled out of the room, asserting all the while that he was doing so against his will and it was not his fault if any students saw him.

The door of the office closed and the surplus chairs slowly dissolved, leaving Kuro alone with McGonagall in a cavernous office.

"Do you actually want me to stay here at Hogwarts?" asked Kuro of the severe looking headmistress.

"What I want is relevant far less than you may imagine, Kuro," she admitted, "but as a matter of fact, yes. I would like you to stay. It is my hope that this school can do you a great deal of good. More selfishly, I believe that you can do a great deal of good for the school."

"So..." Kuro fidgeted uncomfortably. "What did you want to talk to me about?"

"Well Kuro, there is a second part to staying at Hogwarts, your academics." McGonagall looked very stern. "You continue to struggle in several classes, and are still below a passing grade in mine."

Kuro deflated. Rescued from the law only to be thrown out for his own failings.

"However I have ardent assurances from both Miss Avery and Miss Weasley that you are responsible for their remarkable work." She gestured to the scintillating bouquet of flowers on her desk.

"Azalea and Victoire said that?"

"Yes," said McGonagall looking very pleased.

"Together?"

"They're practically inseparable," she said, smiling.

"Really?" said Kuro, baffled.

"I cannot stress enough that I do not approve of the method you used to broker peace between those two, but I cannot argue with the results. It seems they have earned some degree of respect and understanding for one another through your misadventure." McGonagall sighed. "I won't say it was good for them; by all reports it was traumatizing. But it is done, you are safe, and the pair have become fast friends."

"Huh," was all Kuro could think to say.

"They've also told me that you have a wonderful report written for me." McGonagall smiled expectantly.

Kuro looked to his satchel on her desk, still damp. He walked over and reached in, pulling a sodden pile of parchment from it. He pushed the waterlogged report towards the disappointed looking Headmistress.

A scuffling noise in his bag caught both of their attention. Nobody had been taking care of the creatures in his satchel. They might not have even survived the battle.

Kuro reached in quickly and pulled out Sprig who was a little warped from the dampness, but well enough to beg for food, then checked on the boggart. It burst from the bag and appeared as the corpse of a Hogwarts student on MgGonagall's desk. Kuro ruffled the hair of the apparition as McGonagall looked on in horror. "I'm so glad you're okay," said Kuro. "I was worried that that nasty Roche had hurt you."

Kuro pulled the boggart's drawer out of his satchel. "Could you, um, dry it out please?" he asked of McGonagall. "He doesn't like the damp."

"Turgio," she said, tapping it with her wand, grateful for the distraction from the corpse on her desk.

Kuro put some lint from his pocket in the drawer and returned it to the satchel before coaxing the boggart back inside.

"You have a boggart in your book bag." said McGonagall still in shock from the sight.

"Um, yes." Kuro admitted uncertainty.

"And you've been feeding it?"

"Um, yes."

"Seven."

"What?"

"You have succeeded in surprising me seven times, Kuro. It is becoming a pernicious habit and I would prefer if you stopped."

"Yes, headmistress," said Kuro obediently.

McGonagall laughed. Kuro wasn't sure if he liked it. I seemed unnatural for the stern woman to express joy. She sighed happily and looked down at him with a warmth he found deeply disconcerting. "You should probably get going. We can worry about your grades another day and there's someone waiting impatiently downstairs for you."

Kuro took up his soggy bag and slinked away from her desk.

"Before you go," McGonagall halted him at the door. "Would you mind refilling my pitcher? I'm quite parched."

Kuro froze feeling quite exposed. He looked back at the professor. She presented him with a large silver ewer and a knowing look. She knew. She knew that it had been him that had flooded the ball.

"You might want to stand back a bit," said Kuro.

She set the jug down on her desk and stepped back, watching Kuro with interest. He felt the water in the room, tried to shrink it down tried to just feel the water that wanted to be in the jug. He let it go.

It was far too much, as always. It splashed over her desk and ran over her shoes. She looked down at the mess with dismay. "Thank you Kuro," was all she said.

Kuro left the room and ran down the stairs. He was tackled at the landing by Charlie. "What took you so long, we're going to miss it," she scolded him. She took his hand and began to run through the halls.

The bracelet made him feel heavy, he had to struggle to keep up with her. "What are we going to miss?" Kuro asked as she hauled him down more stairs and out into the yard.

"It's a surprise!" she said as they ran out across the grass towards the stables.

They crashed inside to find Edward, Hagrid, Mary, Victore and Azalea waiting for them. "Did we miss it?" asked Charlie, breathless.

"Not yet," chuckled Hagrid. "It's just starting."

Kuro moved to see what they were all staring at. Up in the rafters, the silky cocoon that Charlie's tigerpillar had spent the winter inside of was wriggling and splitting. As they watched, something slowly started to push its way out.

"Oh my goodness, Zel, it's enormous," said Victoire excitedly.

"Five metre wing span," confirmed Azalea, closing a book she was reading about it. "You could almost ride it, Vicky. Kuro, Charlie, come sit." She beckoned them over. "You can see it best from here."

"Vicky? Zel?" Kuro mumbled in shock. "What's going on? Why is everyone here? Why is Azalea being nice?"

"We're a team, aren't we?" said Charlie exuberantly as she took up a place between Azalea and Edward to watch.

Kuro moved over to Mary in a daze hoping for some sensible explanation. "A team?" Kuro asked.

"Charlie seems to think so," she said smiling.

"So, you two aren't fighting anymore?" he asked.

"Not really," said Mary gladly. "I mean, she forgave me. I don't know that I earned it. But she did. You know Charlie."

"What about you, though, you're not jealous of her anymore?" asked Kuro.

Mary surveyed him suspiciously. "Maybe a little. But that's my problem, not hers. She's been nothing but good to me."

"And that thing about liking girls?" queried Kuro. "Is that okay now?"

Mary stayed quiet for a long time as the giant insect emerged from its cocoon, no longer a tigerpillar, but an enormous butterfly. It hung from the rafters as its vibrant wings slowly uncurled and dried.

"It doesn't matter," Mary admitted quietly after a while. "I was supposed to be her friend and I let her down when she needed me. She thinks me saving her in Azkaban makes up for it."

"Doesn't it?" said Kuro.

"No," said Mary. "But it's a start. Thanks to you I get a chance to try again."

"I wish people would stop thanking me," said Kuro ashamedly. "I nearly got you all killed, bringing you along."

Mary threw her arm over Kuro's shoulder and laughed as she pulled him against her. "We'd have never let you go without us," she said. "And we'd do it again in a second, all of us."

"You're mad," said Kuro.

Gasps of wonder interrupted them. The butterfly had begun to beat its wings, testing them for flight. They were a scintillating blue on the underside, which would make it nearly disappear against the sky. The other side was a beautiful pattern of black and orange with huge yellow circles that made it look like the face of a massive tiger.

It dropped from the ceiling and took off, beating its new wings vigorously and sending hay and dust into the air.

They all chased after it as it left the barn and flew out over the Centaur Forest.

Kuro watched his friends, cheering and pointing. He was amazed at how happy and carefree they could be after all that had happened. He felt himself smiling for what felt like the first time in forever. He looked at his magical bracelet, anchoring him there at Hogwarts with them. If it was going to be anywhere, he thought, there was no place he would rather be.


End file.
